Red Moscow

The people Bezikov sent to purchase ingredients had not returned yet, and personnel from the Ministry of Internal Affairs arrived first.

The colonel was still leading the team. He came to the duty room at the door, found Sokov and Yakov, raised his hands in salute, and asked expressionlessly: "Comrade generals, please tell me to send someone to help." I wonder if the British Embassy purchases ingredients?”

"Yes, this is indeed the case." When Sokov saw the appearance of the Colonel of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, he couldn't help but be secretly surprised. He thought that the people of the Ministry of Internal Affairs had very good noses. The person sent to purchase ingredients had been gone for less than an hour. , they actually came to the door. It would be damning if there were no informants from the Ministry of Internal Affairs among the soldiers besieging the embassy.

"Comrade General," the colonel of the Ministry of Internal Affairs asked in a condescending manner, regardless of Sokov's higher military rank: "Who allowed you to help the embassy purchase ingredients? Aren't you worried that they will use this method to pass information to the outside world? ”

Sokov frowned and said dissatisfied: "Comrade Colonel, please pay attention to your attitude. The rank of a general is higher than that of a colonel, not the other way around. The way you talk to me makes me feel like a colonel, And you are the general."

Hearing Sokov speak in such a stern tone, the colonel realized his rudeness, quickly changed his face, and said respectfully: "I'm sorry, Comrade General, I was worried about the personnel in the embassy communicating with the outside world, so I spoke It’s a bit rude, please forgive me.”

"Comrade Colonel," Yakov next to him interrupted: "We have already considered the situation you mentioned. In order to prevent the embassy from transmitting information to the outside world, we not only prohibited anyone who was hot in the building from going out, but also carefully checked The purchase list they provided us. Here it is." As he spoke, he handed the original purchase list to the colonel.

The colonel of the Ministry of Internal Affairs took over the procurement situation. After seeing clearly that everything was written in English, he asked the two of them with some surprise: "Two comrades, generals, didn't you send people to help the embassy purchase ingredients? Why is the procurement list still here? ”

Yakov and Sokov looked at each other and replied with a smile: "Misha was worried that the British would manipulate this list, so he copied a new purchase list and asked our soldiers to follow it. Order to purchase.”

"Comrade General," the colonel of the Ministry of Internal Affairs read the list over and over again, and then expressed his opinion: "If the British want to use this list to convey information to the outside world, they usually use two methods. The first is to use cryptic ink to write on the paper. After writing, the writing on it will be invisible once the ink dries. The person who receives the letter only needs to bake it on the fire or put it on the paper. Once soaked in water, the words on it will appear. Of course, it may also need to be applied with a specific potion before it can be displayed.”

After saying that, the colonel took out the lighter and used the flame to bake the paper.

Sokov and Yakov leaned over and carefully observed whether new writing would appear on the paper. But unfortunately, some parts of the paper were almost burnt, and no new writing appeared.

"Obviously, the method of roasting with fire is incorrect." After the colonel discovered that this method did not work, he picked up the teapot on the stove, poured a cup of water into an empty cup, and then soaked part of the paper with water. Medium: "Now, let's change the method of water immersion and see if any fonts will appear."

As a result, the colonel's test results were still the same, and there was still no writing on the soaked paper.

Seeing this, the colonel scratched the back of his head and said with some embarrassment: "It seems that we should use a special potion to smear it on the paper to see if any fonts are revealed."

"Colonel," Yakov saw this and couldn't help but interject again: "I think you should go back and smear the paper with special potion to check whether there is any hidden content. Now, I want to ask you What’s the second way to say it?”

"The second way to transmit information is to use these words to make articles." The colonel continued: "If it is a printed book or newspaper, spies usually use a special tool frame to place it in a fixed paragraph. Above, so that they can use the letters exposed in the small box to piece together the information they want to know. For handwriting like this, their common method is to use the letters of the first few words in each row to form a piece. Important information."

After hearing this, Yakov glanced at Sokov again, smiled and said to the colonel: "Comrade Colonel, Misha has taken into account all your worries. When he copied the shopping list, he replaced all the English words on it with It’s in Russian, so even if the other party sees the list, they won’t be able to get any information.”

When the colonel heard what Yakov said, his eyes widened in surprise, and he asked Sokov in an unbelievable tone: "General Sokov, is this really the case?"

"Yes." Sokov nodded and said: "In this way, we have completely cut off the embassy's channel for conveying intelligence to the outside world. By the way, I think there is something wrong with the procurement location designated for us by the embassy's procurement department. You know , everyone from the manager to the ordinary employees are locals, why do they think that everyone at the purchasing point can understand the English on the list?”

"I understand, Comrade General, I also think this purchasing point is very suspicious. It may be an intelligence station of the British." The colonel said: "I want to go back and report to my superiors as soon as possible and let them monitor the purchasing place."

Sokov originally wanted the colonel to take people directly to take away the purchasing point, but then he thought about it. The other person was a member of the Ministry of Internal Affairs who had higher ambitions. Although his military rank was not low, the other party might not buy his account. , even if an order is given to them, I am afraid they will not execute it, but will only alert the enemy. It was out of this consideration that Sokov remained silent and watched the colonel salute him and Yakov before turning and leaving the lounge.

As soon as the colonel left, Yakov couldn't help but be a little surprised: "Misha, why didn't you just ask the colonel to take away the purchasing point? Maybe this net will be able to catch a big fish. By then, You and I can follow suit and maybe get another medal on our chests.”

"Yasha, although our military ranks are higher than that of the colonel, you haven't noticed that he behaves very arrogantly in front of us, and he also speaks in a condescending manner, as if he is the superior and we are his subordinates. Same." Sokov said with a serious expression: "If it hadn't been like this, I wouldn't have been angry with him just now."

Yakov chuckled twice, and then said: "There is no way, others are from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, so they naturally look down on ordinary generals like us. By the way, Misha, do you think they will take down that purchasing store?"

"It's hard to say." Sokov shook his head and said, "If he had just led people to arrest him decisively after seeing the purchase list, he might have been able to catch all the people there. But he just said that he wanted to go back and ask for instructions. We'll talk to the superiors later. By the time he's done asking for instructions, the day lilies are probably going to be cold. We'll send people to arrest them by then, and the place will be empty."

"Yeah, you make sense." Yakov nodded and said, "It's a pity that the order given to us by our superiors was to blockade the embassy instead of cracking the British intelligence station. We missed such an opportunity to make a contribution."

"Yasha, these are extraordinary times. Don't cause trouble for yourself." Sokov reminded Yakov: "So we should keep a low profile and surround the embassy honestly. As for other things, we just need to Just turn a blind eye."

"By the way, there are meetings in the Kremlin these days. I wonder what kind of personnel changes there will be?"

"I don't know about others," Sokov said, "but Comrade Malenkov's position will definitely change."

"Why?" Yakov asked in confusion: "Misha, why did you say that?"

"I feel that your father regards him as his successor, and may take advantage of this conference to determine his status." Sokov said vaguely: "After your father retires in the future, he may take over. ”

"No way?!" Yakov expressed doubts about Sokov's statement: "I think there are many people who can take over my father's position. For example, Zhdanov in Leningrad is a popular candidate. No matter how you look at it, he has a higher chance than Comrade Malenkov.”

Sokov was thinking about a problem in his mind. Zhdanov died in 1948. The attending physician initially wrote that the cause of death was myocardial infarction, but in the end it was forcibly changed to functional disorders caused by cirrhosis and hypertension. This conclusion suggests that he died due to excessive drinking. His death, like Kirov's assassination, has become an unsolved mystery in history.

But of course Sokov couldn't tell Yakov about this thing that hadn't happened yet. He could only smile and said lightly: "I still remember what I told you before we went to visit Marshal Rokossovsky. Those words?"

Yakov asked in confusion: "What are you talking about?"

"Many generals who worked hard during the Great Patriotic War suffered from excessive mental pressure, which overdrafted their health." Sokov said: "This is why after the war, many senior generals The reason for being admitted to the hospital. As the top person in charge of Leningrad, Comrade Zhdanov suffered no less mental pressure than Marshal Rokossovsky during the entire war. Therefore, I am very worried about his health. physical condition."

At this point, Sokov intentionally stopped, picked up the tea on the table and took a slow sip, giving Yakov time to digest what he said.

After drinking the water, Sokov saw a look of surprise on Yakov's face, and then continued: "In order to prevent the Germans from occupying Leningrad, Comrade Zhdanov tried his best and seriously overdrawn himself. Although the war is over now, he did not take time off immediately, but continued to be busy with post-war restoration and reconstruction work. You think that under this situation, his physical condition is better than just being responsible for the dismantling of German machinery and equipment. Is Comrade Malenkov better?"

"Misha, I think I understand what you mean." Yakov nodded and said: "Although Comrade Zhdanov's voice is higher than that of Comrade Malenkov, due to his physical condition, he can take over. My father’s chances at that position have dropped significantly, right?”

"That's right." Considering that Yakov was his good friend, Sokov decided to reveal some useful information to him appropriately: "Given your father's health condition, he can still work for at least ten years. What do you think of Zhedano? Can my husband's body last until that time?"

Hearing what Sokov said, Yakov began to mutter something: "Comrade Zhdanov was born on February 26, 1896, and he is exactly fifty years old now."

Sokov did not correct Yakov, saying that the date of birth cannot be said "from which year" he was born, but asked: "What about Comrade Malenkov, which year was he born?"

"January 8, 1902." Yakov was obviously very familiar with the birth dates of these important figures. When he heard Sokov's question, he immediately said it without thinking: "He just turned 44 this year."

"That's right, Comrade Zhdanov will be 60 years old in another ten years; and Comrade Malenkov will only be 54 years old in ten years. In comparison, he has an advantage in terms of age."

"Misha, theoretically speaking, you are right," Yakov said, "but everything you said is just speculation. Maybe Comrade Zhdanov will live a long life and live to be eighty years old, or even At ninety years old, it is entirely possible for him to take over my father's position."

Sokov remembered that Zhdanov's son married Stalin's daughter, thus becoming in-laws with Stalin, but he could not remember clearly when the two parties got married. In order to find out this matter, he tentatively asked Yakov: "Yasha, is your sister married?"

"Yes, my sister Svetlana got married last year."

"Did you marry Alexei Kapler, the screenwriter of "Lenin in October" and "Lenin in 1918"?"

"No." Yakov shook his head and said, "My sister did have a crush on Alexei Kapler, but they have been broken up for a long time. She was with a man named Grikli Morosov last year. My classmate got married and gave birth to a son.”

"Congratulations on becoming an uncle."

Although he couldn't remember the time when Svetlana and Zhdanov's son got married, Sokov remembered that Svetlana divorced her original husband when the child was two years old, and later arranged for Stalin to marry her. Married Zhdanov's son Yuri Andreevich, and gave birth to a daughter Ekaterina after the marriage, but the marriage lasted only a few years before they divorced again.

Yakov asked in confusion: "Misha, we are discussing who might succeed my father, why did you bring the topic to my sister?"

"Yasha, there is a reason why I ask this." After Sokov said this, before Yakov could ask again, he took the initiative and said: "I once heard a rumor that your father had a crush on Zhdanov. The comrade's son Yuri Andreevich valued him very much and planned to marry his daughter to him. It was precisely because of this rumor that when we were talking about Comrade Zhdanov, I couldn't help but change the topic to you. On my sister’s body.”

"What, there are rumors that my sister is going to marry Zhdanov's son?" Hearing what Sokov said, Yakov's face was full of shock: "Who told you this? Why doesn’t my brother know about this?”