"Are there any difficulties?" Zakharkin asked.
"Comrade General." Petrie asked tentatively: "I would like to ask, do these Allied pilots understand Russian or Polish?"
Petrie's words reminded Denis that if the person he wants to rescue does not understand Russian or Polish, how can he communicate after meeting? The most worrying thing is that if the other party regards him as an enemy, how can he communicate due to language barriers?
What's the explanation?
"Yes, Comrade Deputy Commander." Denis echoed: "If we don't understand the language, how can we communicate with these Allied pilots?"
"You don't have to worry about this." Zakharkin had already considered the problem that the two of them were worried about. He smiled and said to the man who came: "I have brought a few translators here, and you will go on a search and rescue mission later.
At the same time, each of them will bring an interpreter with him, so that as long as the Allied pilots are discovered, they can be communicated with them in time."
Zakharkin was responsible for directing the operation to rescue the Allied pilots this time. The reason why he brought several translators with him was because he knew that according to the Soviet custom of thinking, all foreigners who came to the Soviet Union should learn Russian instead of asking the Soviets to
He went to learn foreign languages and communicate with foreigners. However, in the front army, there were many people who knew German, and those who knew English were very rare. He spent a lot of effort to find four translators who knew English.
.
"Comrade Deputy Commander," when he learned that Zakharkin could only send an interpreter to accompany him, Denis felt that this was far from enough. You must know that after launching the search, it would definitely not only be searched in one area.
This means that the troops have to be broken up into parts. There are not enough translators, which is really not possible: "Can you send us two more translators? One translator is too little."
"I'm sorry, Lieutenant Colonel Denis." Zakharkin shook his head and rejected Denis's request, "I only brought four translators who know English. After giving one to each of you, I only have two left.
I want to keep them as backup, in case something happens to your translator in the city, we can only rely on the remaining two to communicate with the Allied pilots."
Just when Denis was feeling worried, Petrie suddenly said: "Comrade General, if you want to find a few people who know English, I think there shouldn't be much of a problem."
Zaharkin said with some surprise: "What, Lieutenant Colonel Petrie, can you find an English translation?"
"Yes, Comrade General, I can find it." Without waiting for Zakharkin to ask again, Petrie took the initiative and said: "You know, there are many people who understand English in Warsaw. I think we just need to send someone nearby to conduct research.
After searching, we can always find a few and let them act as translators for us, which will make it easier for us to search and rescue the missing pilots."
"Okay, Lieutenant Colonel Petrie." Seeing that the problem that troubled him was solved so easily, Zakharkin couldn't help but smile: "Without further delay, let's act quickly. Please find someone as soon as possible.
A group of citizens who understand English have come to cooperate with our actions."
Although there are many people who know English in Warsaw, it will take some time to find them. In order not to delay the search and rescue work, Petrie and Denis divided their forces into two groups. One was responsible for looking for Warsaw people who knew English, while the other
Searching for parachuting Allied pilots.
Unexpectedly, due to the lack of translators, a misunderstanding occurred during the search and rescue process. When a Soviet platoon was searching in the ruins, they found two pilots retracting their parachutes in the distance. They guessed that they were the people they were looking for, and hurriedly headed towards them.
He rushed over to where the other party was.
The highly nervous pilots saw a group of soldiers running towards them. Not knowing that there were Soviet troops in the city, they thought they were Germans. In order not to be captured, they quickly pulled out their weapons and started shooting.
Fortunately, the distance between the two sides was relatively far, and the two pilots' marksmanship was also bad. They fired all the bullets without hurting a single Soviet soldier. As soon as they hid in the ruins of a two-story building, they were attacked by the Soviet army.
After being surrounded by soldiers, the platoon leader who led the team hid behind a broken wall and shouted desperately to the pilots inside: "Don't be afraid, we are friends, we are friends..." But unfortunately, what he shouted
The pilot who was hiding inside couldn't understand the Russian at all. The platoon leader shouted outside for a long time, but he was just playing the piano to a cow.
Just when the platoon leader was about to send someone to find Lieutenant Colonel Denis and ask him to send a translator for help, the Allied pilots trapped in the ruins could not remain calm. They decided to surrender to the "Germans" outside and asked for help.
The prisoners of war should be treated as they should be. After the two discussed it, one of them picked up a wooden stick, tied it with a white handkerchief, stretched out the window and shook it desperately.
When the Soviet platoon leader saw the Allied pilots surrendering, he quickly ordered a few soldiers to go up and help them out from the ruins. Although the two sides did not understand the language, in order to relieve each other's tension, the platoon leader handed his own kettle filled with vodka to
Pilot, ask them to drink to relieve their mood.
Facing this kind of friendly display by the Soviet army, the two Allied pilots were surprised, because these "German soldiers" did not beat or scold them, and even gave them drinks. What surprised them even more was that the person who gave them drinks
After the officer took back the flask, he even gave each of them a cigarette and lit it for them himself.
While smoking, the two pilots thought in confusion: "Strange, why are these Germans different from the Germans they heard about in previous propaganda?" Since they had never come into contact with real German soldiers, they did not think of it at all.
The so-called "Germans" who captured them were actually Soviet commanders and fighters.
When the Soviet platoon leader saw that the two sides could not communicate verbally, he gestured to the other party and motioned for them to follow him. Seeing that these "Germans" were very friendly to him, the two pilots nodded and followed the platoon leader.
.
The Soviet platoon leader took the American pilots to the headquarters of Lazienki Palace, handed them over to Zakharkin, and reported: "Report to Comrade Deputy Commander, we found two Allied pilots, but they don't speak any Russian.
I don’t understand and can’t communicate with them.”
"Thank you for your hard work, Comrade Lieutenant." Zakharkin smiled at the platoon leader and said to him: "Go down and rest first. I will send someone to find you if necessary."
After the platoon leader left, Zakharkin looked at the two Allied pilots in front of him, smiled and said a welcome message. The Soviet interpreter behind him immediately translated this sentence into English: "Two Allied friends
Hey, please sit down!"
When the two Allied pilots heard this, they couldn't help but look at each other. After a moment, the tall and thin man on the left asked tentatively: "Can I ask, are you Germans or Poles?"
After listening to the translation, Zaharkin and others couldn't help laughing, which made the two Allied pilots laugh. After the laughter stopped, Zaharkin looked at the two men and said: "Two gentlemen,
You must have been in the army for a long time, why can't you tell the difference between the German army and the Soviet army?"
The tall and thin man waited for the translator to finish speaking, and immediately asked in surprise: "What, are you Russians?"
Zakharkin nodded with a smile and replied: "Yes, we are the troops of the First Belarusian Front of the Soviet Union. I am General Zakharkin, deputy commander of the front."
After figuring out the identity of the other party, the tall and thin man finally understood why the so-called "German soldiers" were so polite to him after he and his companions were captured. It turned out that they were not Germans at all, but their Russian allies.
He quickly stood at attention and raised his hand to salute Zakharkin: "Hello, Mr. General. I am Captain Bessle of the Royal Air Force, the pilot of the aircraft." Then he shook his head to his companion beside him and said, "This is the pilot.
Lieutenant Lowe."
"Captain Besr, Lieutenant Lowe, on behalf of the First Belarusian Front, I welcome you!" Zakharkin stepped forward and shook hands with the two British pilots one by one to welcome them.
After a brief exchange of greetings, Zaharkin asked the two to sit down and asked someone to bring them some food and coffee. While the two were eating, Zaharkin did not ask them why they came to Warsaw for the airdrop this time.
Instead, he said to the two of them: "Captain Besier, Lieutenant Lowe, you have something to eat first and rest for a while. I will ask you to do a small favor later."
Hearing what Zakharkin said, Besr immediately put down the bread in his hand and asked in a polite and distant tone: "Mr. General, do you know where we can help you?"
Before the Soviet translator had time to translate this passage to Zakharkin, he already guessed from the tone of James's words that the other party had misunderstood what he meant. He laughed and said: "Captain Besser, please
Don't be so neurotic. The help I am talking about is to find other Allied pilots who have landed in Warsaw. You must know that there may be misunderstandings due to language barriers. Other pilots may not understand our soldiers when they meet them.
You two are so lucky."
After figuring out what kind of help Zakharkin was going to ask him to do, Besr couldn't help but blush. Thinking of the misunderstanding that had just happened, he quickly said to Zakharkin: "General, please don't worry. I'll wait for you later."
Luo Wei and I will follow your team and go to the city to find our comrades."
"Captain Besr," Zaharkin reminded: "In order to speed up the search, I suggest that you two separate, each with a search team. What do you think?"
Seeing the Soviet general discussing the search for his comrades with him in a consultative tone, Besser was particularly moved. He quickly stood up and said to Zakharkin: "General, in order to rescue my comrades as soon as possible, I suggest that we set out now.
Bar."
"But, Captain Besser." Zaharkin saw the food on the table. Besser and the others hadn't eaten much yet, so he couldn't help but said in embarrassment: "You haven't finished eating yet."
Besier grabbed two pieces of bread and continued: "Without further delay, we must take action immediately. We must know that every minute we delay here, the pilots who land in the city will be in greater danger. We need to
They were rescued as soon as possible." Later facts proved that it was Besser's prompt decision that successfully saved the lives of many Soviet soldiers and Allied pilots, preventing them from having unnecessary conflicts despite the language barrier.
.
Zakharkin took out a map of Warsaw, gave it to Besser and told him: "Captain Besser, according to our observation, several pilots landed in the Chernyyakufu Lake area in the north, although there
It’s an uninhabited land, but it’s often shot at by German machine guns, so you have to pay attention to your own safety.”
"Thank you for your concern, Mr. General." Besr took the map from Zaharkin's hand, folded it and put it into the pocket of his flight jacket. He said with a smile: "I know very well that this is a battlefield. Can I survive?"
, then it depends on God’s will.”
The one who went to search for the pilot with Besr was the Soviet platoon that brought him back. In order to avoid another language barrier, Zakharkin arranged for the translator just now to be included in this small unit.
The soldiers took James and the translator on foot to Lake Chernyakow, hoping to find the parachuting Allied pilots there. As soon as they left Povsinska Street, they heard intensive gunfire from the woods ahead.
The sound. The platoon leader leading the team quickly ordered to stop. After listening for a while, he turned to Besser and said: "Captain Besser, judging from the gunshots, it was the firing of Mosin Lagann rifles, Bobosha submachine guns and pistols."
.There may be a misunderstanding between your pilots and our soldiers."
Hearing that there might be a misunderstanding between his compatriots and the Soviet army, Besser could not keep his composure and quickly urged the platoon leader: "Mr. Second Lieutenant, we have to get there as soon as possible, otherwise something big will happen."
The Soviet platoon leader quickly ordered the soldiers: "Disperse into formation and run forward!" Then he said to Besier: "Captain, please stay with me and don't fall behind."
When they came to the lake and met a Soviet squadron fighting here, a sergeant ran over and saluted the platoon leader: "Comrade Second Lieutenant, we encountered an Allied pilot. But when he saw
When they came to us, they opened fire without explanation, killed one of my soldiers, and then fled to hide under a ridge by the lake."
After figuring out what was going on, the platoon leader said to Besier: "Captain, please say hello to your people to avoid further bloodshed."
Besier nodded, lay down behind a mound, and shouted loudly toward the lake: "I am Captain Besier of the Royal Air Force, who are you?"
But after shouting the first time, there was no movement at the lakeside. Besier didn't know whether the other party didn't hear clearly or left, so he turned around and asked the sergeant beside him: "Did he leave?"
"No!" After listening to the translation, the sergeant shook his head and said, "He must still be hiding by the lake, and he was shooting at us a few minutes ago."
After confirming that there was a pilot hiding by the lake, Besier raised his voice again and identified himself to the other party. This time there was finally a response, and a hoarse voice sounded from the other side: "I am Lieutenant Martin of the Royal Air Force. Besier
Captain, were you captured by the Germans?"
"I was not taken prisoner, Lieutenant Martin." After Besier simply explained his situation to the other party, he continued: "The people with me now are Russians, not Germans. They are our allies, not our enemies.
,Understand?"
The other party was silent for a while, then asked cautiously: "Captain Besier, is everything you said true?"
"Of course it's true, Lieutenant Martin, everything I said is true." In order to show his sincerity, Besier stood up from his hiding place and shouted at the other party: "Don't shoot at your friends again, from the lake
Come here. I promise you, you will never be harmed."
This chapter has been completed!