Red Moscow

When Sokov and others returned to the hotel and were about to go to the restaurant for lunch, they were stopped by Sokolovsky's new adjutant: "General Sokov, you are finally back!"

"What's the matter?"

"Comrade Deputy Commander said that when he saw you back, he asked you to see him immediately." The adjutant said: "He has something important to discuss with you."

"Where is Comrade Deputy Commander?"

"In his room, you can go to find him." After the adjutant said this, he looked at Adelina and continued: "And Comrade Adelina, please go with us."

"What, let Adelina go too?" Sokov was a little surprised when he heard what the adjutant said. He was surprised and asked curiously: "Do you know what happened?"

The adjutant shook his head and replied: "General Sokov, I just conveyed the order of the deputy commander. As for why he asked Comrade Adelina to go with him, I don't know. It's getting late, let's go now and don't let the general wait anxiously."

Sokov turned to Vaserigov and said: "Major, I have to go to the deputy commander. You can take everyone to the restaurant for dinner first." After explaining, he turned around and said politely to the adjutant, "Let's go to see the deputy commander now."

Under the leadership of the adjutant, Sokov and Adelina came to the room where Sokolovsky lived.

Seeing Sokov coming in, Sokolovsky put down the documents in his hand, stood up and shook hands with Sokov: "Misha, you have been out for a whole morning, what do you think of this city?"

"It's a pretty good ancient city." Sokov said: "It's a pity that it became a ruin in the war. I don't know how many years it will take to restore it to its pre-war appearance."

"Yes, it is indeed a pity that a city with an ancient history has become a ruin in the war." Sokolovsky said: "Therefore, we chose to try the war criminals who started the war here."

Sokov thought of the prisoners of war who were tried at the Nuremberg Military Tribunal, and said with some regret: "It's a pity that the biggest culprits such as the mustache and Goebbels have committed suicide, otherwise they will also be on the bench."

"They are worried about being judged by history, so they all chose to commit suicide." After saying this, Sokolovsky changed the topic to business: "I called you here today because I have something to discuss with you."

Sokov couldn't help but be a little stunned, thinking that if there is anything, just give me an order, do you still need to discuss it with me? "Comrade Deputy Commander," he said politely, "If you have anything to say, please tell me directly, and you don't have to discuss it with me."

Sokolowski's eyes turned to Ajelina who was standing behind Sokov: "I called you two here because we are short of translators, and the translator sent by Berlin will have to wait for two days, so before they come, I hope Comrade Ajelina can temporarily work in the translation team. What do you think?"

Although Sokolovsky said this in a negotiating tone, both Sokov and Ajelina knew in their hearts that this was an order to themselves, so how could they not agree to the other party? Ajelina hurriedly stepped forward and said, "Comrade Deputy Commander, I will resolutely obey your order."

In this way, with Ajelina being transferred to the translation team, it became impossible for Sokov to go out shopping as he pleased. Although there are also German-speaking guards among the guards he brought, it is completely different to bring a female translator and a male translator when going out. Therefore, Sokov decisively chose to stay in the hotel.

However, he was not worried about being bored in the hotel, because he asked Sokolovsky for enough paper and pen to continue writing his unfinished novel "An Ordinary Soldier", intending to complete the creation of this novel before returning to Moscow.

Seeing that Sokov did not go out, Vaserigov was worried that he was bored, so he came to see him.

After entering the room, he saw Sokov writing at his desk, and he was quite puzzled. He thought to himself that the deputy commander comrade did not seem to have assigned any work to the general. What was he writing when he sat at the table all day? With such doubts, he came to Sokov quietly and asked cautiously: "Comrade General, what are you writing?"

"Major, it's you." Sokov looked up and saw that it was Vaserigov who came in. He put down the pen in his hand and explained to him with a smile: "I'm writing a novel."

"Writing a novel?" Vaserigov showed a surprised expression on his face after hearing it: "Comrade General, I really didn't expect that you would write a novel?"

"That's right." Sokov nodded and continued: "Some time ago, my first novel "The Dawns Here Are Quiet" has been published, and the sales in China are not bad."

Vasherigov has been staying in Berlin since the end of the war. He can't see novels published in Moscow here, so when he heard Sokov say this book title, he was somewhat surprised. He asked in surprise: "Comrade General, I really didn't expect that the novel you wrote has been published. I wonder how the sales are?"

"From the current sales momentum, it's pretty good overall." Sokov said confidently: "In the future, it will not only be adapted into a drama and opera, but also put on the screen."

"You are really amazing." If at the beginning, Vaseligov's words were a little perfunctory, now they turned into sincere conviction. As for whether Sokov would lie to himself, that is simply impossible. When friends come from Moscow, you will know the truth or falsehood by asking them.

"Major, why did you come to see me?"

"It's nothing. I was worried that you might be a little bored staying in your room if you don't go out all day." Vaserigov said: "Now it seems that I was worrying too much. By the way, I want to ask you, Once the book is written, where do you plan to publish it?”

"After this book is written, I will send it back to Moscow." Sokov said: "I wrote part of it before I came to Berlin, and the manuscript of the first half is in Moscow. I will finish the rest of the story and send it back After Moscow, manpower will be arranged there for publication.”

"Comrade General, I wonder if I would be honored to read your book first after it is finished?"

"Yes." Sokov readily agreed to Vaserigov's request. After all, when he wrote "The Dawns Here Are Quiet" in Vladimir, many people had read his manuscript: " When I finish writing, I will let you be one of the first readers.”

Sokov stayed in his room to create every day, and the time outside flew by quickly. Before he knew it, it was time for a new trial to begin.

The person who came to inform Sokov was none other than Agelina, who was temporarily transferred to the translation team some time ago.

Seeing Agelina entering the door, Sokov immediately stepped forward to greet her, grabbed her hands, and said softly: "Agelina, you are back!"

"Yes, I'm back." Agelina looked at Sokov with a half-smile, and asked, "Did you miss me?"

"Yes, of course I do." Sokov said with a smile, "I can only dream of it."

Agelina saw the pens and papers on the table and asked curiously: "Misha, why are there so many pens and papers on the table? What are you writing?"

"What else could it be? Of course it's a novel." Sokov shrugged his shoulders and continued: "How about passing the boring days every day."

"Misha, I came here to find you because I want you to attend today's court hearing."

After learning that he could attend the court hearing today, Sokov asked emotionally, "I wonder who is on trial today?"

"According to the original plan, the war criminal on trial today was German Air Marshal Göring."

"Then let's set off quickly." Sokov was eager to see how Goering was tried in court, so he urged Agelina: "Don't keep Comrade Deputy Commander waiting."

After meeting Sokolovsky at the door, Sokov, Adelina, and Vaserigov took a jeep and followed the convoy toward the location of the trial.

Since Sokov and others were here to observe, after entering the court, they were placed in a corner, but from here, they could also see the war criminals sitting on the trial bench.

Sokov's eyes swept over the more than 20 war criminals, and finally locked onto a man in a white military uniform. According to the information he knew, Göring was a fat man, but now it seems that he is a bit unworthy of his reputation. The military uniform looked a little empty on me and looked very ill-fitting.

Soon, the judges trying war criminals entered the court one after another.

On the trial bench, four judges from different victorious countries were sitting there. Judges in the Soviet Union wore brown military uniforms, while judges in the United States, Britain and France all wore black robes. In the courtroom, thick gray velvet curtains were hung down, blocking the Nuremberg early winter sky, and the entire courtroom showed a melancholy solemnity.

After the trial began, the chief prosecutor, U.S. Judge Jackson, first read out the general indictment.

Jackson’s courtroom statement was one of the most important in history: “The crimes we seek to bring to trial were so carefully planned, so vicious, so destructive that human civilization cannot tolerate them being ignored. If we don’t accept the trial, we can’t tolerate them coming back again.”

Jackson read out evidence and testimony that 3,000 Jews were massacred because they were suspected of carrying "Bolshevik leaflets"; he also cited a chilling report that countless people were killed when the Gestapo bloodbathed a Jewish ghetto in Warsaw. The Jews rushed into simple huts and sewers and carried out explosions.

Immediately afterwards, Soviet prosecutor Roman Rudenko began to speak. The facts listed in the indictment were unheard of by the Germans sitting in the gallery, and everyone who listened was shocked.

But soon, the German lawyers defending the war criminals began to take action.

When Rom Rudenko declared Göring guilty of aggression, his lawyer defended him: "I think my client is innocent."

When the people in the court heard what the lawyer said, they couldn't help but be stunned. Are they planning to plead not guilty for Goering?

"Yes, I think the respected Marshal Goering is innocent." The German lawyer said proudly: "I can present evidence to show everyone that the war we are fighting with Russia is a war to protect German security. war of self-defense.”

When Sokov heard this, he was stunned. He never dreamed that someone would defend war criminals so frantically and try to clear their names. If he were not worried about causing diplomatic disputes, he would definitely take off his boots and smash them at the German lawyer without hesitation. past.

After obtaining the court's permission, the German lawyer picked up a brown paper file bag and said solemnly: "The document in my hand can show that the Russians intend to launch a full-scale attack on the German Empire on June 29, 1941, code-named Operation Thunderbolt."

"Misha." Adelina heard this and couldn't help but have a little doubt in her heart: "Is what this lawyer said true?"

"False, it must be false." Sokov answered without thinking: "If our army really intended to launch an attack on Germany, how could it be defeated in the early stage of the war, and even almost let the Germans occupy Moscow. This lawyer just wanted to exonerate the war criminals and deliberately fabricated false evidence."

The lawyer took a piece of paper from the file bag and said to several judges: "This is a top-secret document seized by our army from the command center of the Russian troops at the beginning of the war. It records their detailed offensive orders." After that, he stepped forward and handed the paper to the judge's assistant.

The assistant took the paper handed over by the lawyer and turned around to put it in front of the judge.

When Sokov saw the paper, he suddenly remembered the movie "Battle of Moscow". A few hours after the outbreak of the war, Rokossovsky opened a top-secret document under the National Defense Committee at the risk of losing his head when he lost contact with his superiors. The order issued in it was to let his troops launch an assault on the Lublin area in Poland and crush the enemy who broke into the border.

The evidence presented by the lawyer might have been seized by the Germans from the safe of a military command, and it did contain content about launching an attack on the German army. If the lawyer makes a fuss about this, it means that today's trial of Goering will come to nothing.

The judge took the document handed over by his assistant, quickly glanced at the contents, and then said to the lawyer: "Why are they all in Russian? Why are they not translated into English and French?"

"Yes, Your Honor." The lawyer took out two more sheets of paper from the file bag and handed them to the assistant of the chief judge again: "Here are the contents translated by our organization. There are two versions, English and French. I think it is exactly what you need."

After taking the translation and reading it for a while, the chief judge did not express any opinion. Instead, he handed it to the Soviet judge and said politely: "Please take a look at whether the contents of this translation are completely consistent with those of the original."

When the Soviet judge was checking the original and the translation, Ajelina said with some concern: "Misha, it seems that this lawyer is well prepared. It will probably take a lot of time to refute the evidence he provided. It seems that today's trial of Goering will end so hastily."

As Ajelina analyzed, after the Soviet judge confirmed that the contents of the original and the translation were consistent, the chief judge announced that the trial of Goering had come to an end temporarily, and that the Soviet prosecutor would retry Goering after collecting more favorable evidence.