Red Moscow

Sokov waited for Werner to finish, then repeated what he had said to Asiya, and finally said: "Comrade screenwriter, if a book is published without publicity, it may be difficult to attract readers' attention." If readers don't know about it, it would be impossible to sell thousands of copies a day."

After listening to Sokov's analysis, Werner pondered for a long time, and finally said: "Comrade General, I understand what you mean. If you want to promote this book in newspapers or on the radio, I'm afraid it will take several days. , can achieve a very ideal effect. The best way is, as you said, to put a small blackboard at the door of the bookstore and write the name of the new book. And put a small bookshelf directly opposite the door of the bookstore. , put the new book on it so that readers can see it as soon as they come in. Do you think this is okay?"

"Okay, okay." Sokov agreed very much with Werner's statement. After all, he proposed it himself. Only in this way can he increase the exposure of the new book in a short time and let more readers know that there is a book that reflects the Great Patriotic War. A female soldier’s new book is published: “I believe that doing this will greatly help the sales of the new book.”

The two chatted for a while, and Werner suddenly remembered something and said to Sokov: "Comrade General, I met a person today. After he knew that I knew you, he asked me for your phone number and address. Ready to visit you."

"Someone is coming to visit me?" Sokov asked in confusion: "Did he say who he is?"

"He said his name was Gavrilov." Werner said: "He said that when you were fighting in East Prussia, you rescued him from a German prisoner of war camp and appointed him as a prisoner of war camp set up by our army. The battalion leader specializes in guarding the Germans captured by our army."

"It turns out it's him." When he learned that the person he was looking for was actually Gavrilov, Sokov couldn't help laughing: "Comrade screenwriter, he is a commander worthy of my respect."

Hearing what Sokov said, Werner couldn't help but frowned, wondering what was going on? You, a general, actually said that a major is someone you respect. Are you sure you are right? With this question, Werner asked tentatively: "Comrade General, do you know this major very well?"

"Of course, comrade screenwriter." Sokov felt that Gavrilov's deeds could be used in the filming of "The Battle of the Fortress", so he said to Werner: "His experience can be said to be a legend, completely It could be used to make a new movie.”

Sokov's words aroused great interest in Werner: "Comrade General, tell me what kind of experience he has?"

"He turned out to be the commander of the 44th Infantry Regiment of the Brest Fortress," Sokov said briefly: "On the day the war broke out, he took in hundreds of soldiers to hold on to the fortress, using crude weapons without reinforcements. He fought tenaciously with the enemy. When the troops who lacked ammunition, food and water were exhausted, he stayed alone in the fortress to fight guerrillas with the enemy. He persisted for as long as a month, until he was finally wounded and captured... …”

When Sokov told the story of Gavrilov, Werner kept writing on the paper with a pen, as if he wanted to write down all the experiences of this heroic fortress defense. When Sokov stopped, he asked anxiously: "Comrade General, why don't you stop talking? Keep talking, I'm going to record the major's story and adapt it into a movie script."

"Comrade screenwriter, don't you know where Major Gavrilov is?" Sokov said into the microphone: "If you want to know more detailed stories, you can go to him and ask him to give you detailed information. Tell it again to facilitate your collection of materials."

"Yes, yes, Comrade General, you are right." Werner nodded and said: "I can indeed go directly to Major Gavrilov and ask him about what happened in the Brest Fortress. Everything that happened. By the way, I have one more thing to ask you."

"What's up?"

"Comrade General, this is what I think." Werner said cautiously: "A man who has just endured the test of the horrific and inhumane system of the prisoner of war camp and endured the inhuman humiliation of the prisoners of war by the enemy, after being rescued , you actually directly appointed him as the person in charge of the prisoner of war camp. Will he become ruthless in the prisoner of war camp, and in some way take revenge on the enemy for all the misfortunes he encountered? "

"Comrade screenwriter, facts have proven that my decision was correct." Sokov replied: "In this regard, Gavrilov showed a true party member, as well as the mind and temperament of a Soviet person. He used his unique With his humanitarian spirit, he organized the custody of prisoners of war impeccably and even prevented the spread of diseases among prisoners of war. I heard that he received a certificate for his outstanding work in the prisoner of war camp."

"So that's it. It seems like he's a nice guy." Before putting down the phone, Werner asked Sokov for his opinion: "If he asks for your phone number and address again, can I tell him?"

"Of course, of course." Sokov replied simply: "You can completely agree to his request. By the way, let him know that as long as he has time, he can come to my home as a guest at any time. My wife and I welcome him. His arrival.”

When Sokov put down the phone, Asya asked curiously: "Misha, who wants to visit our house?"

"Gavrilov," Sokov told Werner the story of Gavrilov. Asya happened to go out to a neighbor's house at the time and might have heard what he said. When she asked about it, Sokov told her the story of Major Gavrilov in detail: "He is a hero, but it is a pity that he has not received meritorious service commensurate with his contribution. .”

"Misha, you said that when the enemy besieged the fortress, Major Gavrilov asked all the women and children to go out and surrender to the Germans." Asiya asked curiously: "I want to ask what happened to these women and children. how's it going?"

"The second year of the war, the Germans shot all these women and children."

After Asya exclaimed, she asked nervously: "So, Major Gavrilov's wife and children were also killed by the Germans?"

Unexpectedly, Sokov shook his head after hearing this and said: "Major Gavrilov's wife and Kolia, when the Germans were transferring them, quietly broke away from the team while the Germans were not paying attention and fled into the The nearby forest, they were lucky to survive.”

"Then where are they now?" After hearing that Major Gavrilov's wife and children survived, Asya's face showed a relaxed expression, and she continued to ask: "Then where are they now, Major?" Have you reunited with them?”

When Sokov heard this question, he almost blurted out the standard answer: In 1956, on the day when the heroes of the Fortress Defense War returned to Brest, a female citizen came to the hotel to meet Gavrilov and told He said that his wife was still alive and was living in a home for the disabled in Brest region. Therefore, Gavrilov made inquiries from relevant parties and found that his wife, Ekaterina Grigorievna Gavrilova, indeed lived in the Home for the Disabled in the Kosov District. That night he drove more than a hundred kilometers to find his wife.

But now there are still eleven years before the day when Gavrilov and his wife charged, and it is obviously inappropriate for him to say it at this time. Therefore, he could only say against his will: "After I rescued the major from the prisoner of war camp, I asked someone to inquire about his wife and adopted son. But unfortunately, I did not get any useful information."

"That's such a pity." Asia said with regret: "Even if Major Gavrilov's wife and children are still alive, they must think that the major has died. Even if the war is over, they may not be able to return. The original home. In this case, the chance of them meeting again is really slim."

"Asia, I believe a miracle will happen." Sokov felt that he could completely change Gavrilov's fate. He only needed to reveal some information about his wife and children to him at the right time. Maybe It can reunite their family in advance, so he said to Asiya: "Maybe they can be reunited someday."

"I don't know how many years it will take before they can be reunited." Asia sighed and said, "It would be great if we could help him."

Sokov saw that Asiya cared so much about Gavrilov's family and felt that it might not be a good thing to reunite Gavrilov with his wife prematurely. According to the information he had, Major Gavrilov's wife suffered from severe rheumatism and was bedridden for many years to recuperate. As a result, the two had no children for more than ten years after they were married. In the end, they had to adopt a boy named Kolya in an orphanage. As an adopted son.

After the war, Gavrilov searched everywhere for news about his wife and adopted son, but after seven or eight years of searching, he still did not get any useful clues, so that he thought that his wife and adopted son had died in the war. Later, in With the persuasion of friends, I married a new wife.

Naturally, Sokov would not tell Asiya that Gavrilov remarried a few years later. He could only say euphemistically: "Asiya, I heard that Gavrilov's wife was seriously ill. , who was bedridden all year round to recuperate. They had been married for more than ten years and had no children. In the end, they went to an orphanage to adopt a boy as an adopted son. Major Gavrilov spent several years in a German prisoner-of-war camp because of his The injury was not well treated, leaving serious sequelae. If he were reunited with his family at this moment, he might not be able to take care of his wife."

"What sequelae did he leave behind?" Asiya asked with concern: "Tell me what you think and let me see if there is any way to treat it."

Sokov pointed to his ear and said: "His right ear was deafened during the war, and his right hand has become deformed due to the lack of effective treatment after being injured. He cannot hold a gun at all. Otherwise, he would have lost his right ear." After he is rescued, I will not refuse his request to join the combat force, but directly arrange for him to manage a prisoner of war camp."

"So that's it." Asiya said depressedly, "I didn't expect that after the war, Major Gavrilov would still not be able to reunite with his family."

"Asiya, don't worry." Sokov comforted Asiya and said, "Major Gavrilov and his wife and children will be reunited one day."

After comforting Asya, Sokov began to wonder whether he should write a novel related to the defense of the Brest Fortress after finishing "An Ordinary Soldier". If possible, let Yakov go to Stalin to brag about Gavrilov's achievements and see if this brave major can get his honorary title of "Hero of the Soviet Union" in advance.

"Misha, what are you thinking about?" Asiya suddenly noticed that Sokov's eyes were staring ahead, with no focus between his eyes. She guessed that he was thinking about something important again, so she called him twice and waited. When Sokov's eyes turned to her, she asked tentatively: "Did you think of any other novel themes?"

"Yes, Asya, I did think of a new novel theme." Sokov nodded and said: "The commanders and fighters who defended the Brest Fortress faced the sudden attack by the German army, and they resisted tenaciously. .Although they did not hold on in the fortress for long due to lack of ammunition, food and water, they are still our heroes. I want to reproduce the scene of their battle with the Germans in the form of a novel. If If possible, we should strive for the honor that belongs to those heroes who sacrificed their lives."

When Asia first heard Sokov saying that he wanted to write a book based on the defense of the Brest Fortress, she acted very calmly, but when she heard the following words, she couldn't help but be shocked: "Misha, you Crazy, it is not an easy task to fight for the honor that belongs to a group of commanders and soldiers who have sacrificed their lives long ago. If Major Gavrilov comes to visit one day, you give him such hope, but in the end you can't help him. Well, he doesn’t know how disappointed he will be.”

"Don't worry, Asya, I won't tell Gavrilov about this yet." Sokov said: "When Yasha comes, I will tell him about the Brest Fortress and ask him to Go check with his father and see if there's any chance of honoring these fallen heroes."

"Well, it is undoubtedly the most appropriate to let Yasha go explore the wind." Asiya nodded and said: "If Comrade Stalin is willing to award honors to the defenders, it is not too late for you to formally propose it. If you don't have such an intention , you should not take risks easily, lest you cause unnecessary trouble to yourself."

"Yeah, I know." Sokov nodded and said, "I know it well."

"What are your plans for tomorrow?" Asiya changed the subject in time: "Will you continue to go to the bookstore to check the sales status of the book?"

"Yes, I will go to the major bookstores in the city tomorrow." Sokov said: "Werner promised me that he would contact Editor-in-Chief Xie Keluo as soon as possible to increase publicity for my book, at least Make sure that at the door of every bookstore there is a blackboard with the title of the book written on it. A bookshelf should be placed directly opposite the door of the store to display my books. Only by doing this can readers understand my books in a timely manner. The information of the book. Only in this way is it possible to increase the sales of the book.”