Chapter 1044 Hope...and the hope that comes to your door
In the warm basement filled with the aroma of broth, as Wei Ran put away his harmonica, the children, as well as Kena and Via, also clapped feebly.
"This song is really nice"
As she spoke, Ke Na walked up to Wei Ran, stretched out her hand and asked, "What's its name? Also, can you show me your harmonica?"
"Time flies," Wei Ran replied in Russian and handed the harmonica to Kona before he could put it in his pocket.
"time flies…"
Kona took the harmonica and sighed, "It would be great if time could pass faster. Even if it only goes faster, I would be satisfied."
"yes"
Wei Ran stood up unsteadily, walked to the edge of the stove, and opened the lid of the enamel pot. Immediately, the rich steam mixed with the fragrance of dried fish and mouse meat hit his face, and everyone sitting around him hit him.
The children also twitched their noses subconsciously.
Thanks to the fact that Kona chopped the rat meat into fine enough pieces just now, even though it only took a while to cook, it was already cooked.
Without wasting time, Ke Na was responsible for filling each child's enamel cup with broth, and Wei Ran was responsible for distributing slices of bread to the children - especially keeping an eye on Mrs. Via, who seemed to be on hunger strike, supervising her to eat every bite of food.
It really went into my stomach.
When Kona served each of the children a cup of broth for the second time, Wei Ran also took his own cup of broth and a small piece of bread and sat in the corner closest to the door again.
In this small cup of broth, apart from a thin layer of incomplete oily flowers, there was only a piece of fingernail-sized meat. It was unclear whether it was rat meat or the hind leg meat brought back from Galina's house.
Using the small piece of bread to soak up the soup, Wei Ran threw it into his mouth expressionlessly, chewed it briefly and swallowed it into his stomach.
Although fresh rat meat was added to today's broth, the taste is still not much better. As for whether rat meat is disgusting, Wei Ran, who has only been hungry for less than two days, doesn't care at all. He believes that those
Children, those residents of Leningrad probably don't care even more.
After drinking up the rest of the broth in the cup in one gulp and eating the small piece of stewed meat, Wei Ran let Ke Na help him fill the second cup of boiling broth, silently.
Looking at the skinny children around the stove, he continued to think about where to get enough food, and how many days should he use the few supplies in the metal book to feed him if he couldn't get enough food.
These children add one meal to supplement their nutrition.
It's not just Wei Ran who is also distracted, there is also Kona who is worried about whether Lidia is in danger, and Mrs. Via who is worried about whether her son Belia is still alive.
Perhaps, this bank accountant who has reached retirement age is still worried about another thing - if her son meets with an accident, if Lydia meets with an accident, if they don't have the one hundred dollars they save from their own mouths.
Doc Brown Bread, will the children in this basement survive in the end?
In particular, Wei Ran not only brought back a baby who could only drink milk, but also brought back so many older children who were in urgent need of nutrition.
Compared to these three worried adults, those young and carefree children get along particularly well. In addition to savoring the sweaty broth just now, they are also immersed in the excitement of meeting new friends.
"Okay kids"
Mrs. Via waited for the children to put their enamel cups on the table and said, "We should go to bed as soon as possible after eating just now. If we wait until we feel hungry again, we will not want to sleep all night."
It’s on.”
This reminder was more effective than any words. Upon hearing this, the children who were frightened by hunger immediately got into their own blankets around the warm stove under Kona's arrangement.
There was no talk all night, and early the next morning, the rumbling sound of artillery fire and explosions woke up everyone who had gone to bed early before the sun fully rose.
Surprisingly, just when Wei Ran was about to leave the basement to see if the mousetrap he set yesterday had yielded any results, Lidya, who had not appeared last night, came back! "Sister Lidya!"
When Kona saw Lydia pushing the door in, she immediately let out an exclamation, then hugged her and choked with tears, "Where were you last night? I thought you..."
"Worrying you"
Lidia hugged Kona, first looked at Mrs. Via, who was looking at her with a handkerchief in both hands, and then took a deep breath and said, "Mrs. Via, Kona, and Victor, we need to go
Let’s talk next door.”
Hearing this, Kona slowly left Lidya's arms, looked at her in panic, and then looked at Mrs. Via behind her. Finally, she nodded silently and supported Via, whose eyes were already overflowing with tears.
Madam, she lit the candle and left this warm room.
After Wei Ran opened the locked door next door and everyone went in, Lidia first untied her scarf and hung it around Ke Na's neck. Then, she took it off and put it on her body as a cloak.
She took off the woolen blanket, and then took off the thick woolen cotton coat she was wearing.
When the coat was handed over to Wei Ran, everyone noticed under the scorched yellow flames provided by the candle lamp that there was actually a Soviet army sack on Lidya's back.
Not only that, there was an infusion bottle tied to her belt with a shoelace, and the infusion bottle was actually filled with white milk!
"This is..." Mrs. Wea looked at the bottle of milk that Lidia took off from her waist in astonishment, and for a moment she didn't know how to ask.
"I went with the horse-drawn sleigh team to Osinowitz Pier last night."
While Lidia was talking, her whole face was red from the cold, she had already taken off the sack bag on her back. After opening it, she unexpectedly pulled out a headless pike that was half a meter long and had completely frozen.
!
This chapter is not over, please click on the next page to continue reading! "I helped move supplies there all night and got the bottle of milk."
Lidia said proudly, "This bottle of milk is enough to keep little Galina full for two days."
"What about this?" Kona asked, pointing to the headless pike in the other person's hand.
"This is…"
Lidia glanced at Mrs. Via and said with a smile, "Belia asked me to bring this to you. The night before yesterday, their transport team was bombed by German planes, but those idiots only blew up the ice.
The layer did not hurt them. On the contrary, it exploded into such a pike. I estimate that this fish might weigh three kilograms! "
"Is my Belia okay?!" Mrs. Via asked in a panic. "Is he okay? Of course he is okay."
Lydia said as she handed the pike to Mrs. Via, "But I heard that he seems to have been transferred to guard the automotive technical service point, which is the tents on the ice of Lake Ladoga. It seems that
Because the recent storms have been severe, more people with road knowledge and experience are needed to guide the trucks on the ice and provide hot water."
"How come I don't know about this?" Mrs. Wea looked at Lidia suspiciously and panicked, "Lydia, good child, don't lie to me, don't lie to him..."
"He's really fine"
Lidia raised her hands and said swornly, "I swear to Comrade Stalin and my parents that Belia is really fine. It was really just a sudden transfer. The wind and snow on the lake were very strong yesterday. Not only did she freeze to death,
Many people were killed, and many transport trucks got lost and didn’t know where they were going, so they were dispatched there urgently.”
Having said this, Lidya breathed a sigh of relief, put down her hands and said apologetically, "Originally, I thought something happened to Brother Belia, so I took a horse-drawn sledge transporting supplies to the dock overnight and waited for me to arrive.
There, he was busy helping to load and unload supplies.
He was very happy to see me coming over. Originally, he thought he had no chance to send the fish back.
Also, he said that now he can get 250 grams of black bread every day, and when he picks up fish that were killed by the Germans in the future, he will ask Anatoly from the combat sled transport team to help bring it back."
Speaking of this, Lydia said distressedly, "However, he said that Anatole and the others only have the opportunity to return to the city once a week. As for him, I'm afraid they have to wait until spring..."
"I see"
Mrs. Via was completely relieved, "It seems that he is really not in danger, so I'm relieved. He and Anatoly were classmates in elementary school. If he didn't tell you, you wouldn't know about it."
of."
Hearing this, Lidya also secretly breathed a sigh of relief, pointed to the next door and asked, "Now it's my turn to ask, what's going on with the new big kids next door?"
"Victor brought it back yesterday!"
Kona explained what happened yesterday while hanging the headless pike on the wall with nails to prevent it from being eaten by rats. Finally, the girl did not forget to mention the music Wei Ran played on the harmonica yesterday.
"It seems we have to take another photo." Lydia asked with a smile, "Victor, do you have any extra film?"
"Of course." Wei Ran smiled and nodded, "Do you still have to work during the day today? If you don't have time now, you can wait until the afternoon." "I didn't work this morning. Speaking of this..."
Lydia paused, took out a newspaper bag from the sack and handed it to Mrs. Via, saying as if taking credit, "This is the bread that was supposed to be sent back yesterday afternoon, but I was worried that I would not be able to catch up with the sledge to the dock.
And I was worried that if I gave it to someone else, it would be stolen, so I took it with me."
“Today is such a good harvest day”
Mrs. Via took the newspaper bag and opened it, took a look at the bread inside, and a hopeful smile immediately appeared on her old and thin face.
“That’s not all.”
Lydia had already wandered to the door as she spoke, "I will take the new children to register, so that starting from this afternoon, I can get their bread back."
Before she finished speaking, Lidya had already opened the door and walked out. At the same time, she added, "Victor, prepare your camera. When I come back, we will take a group photo."
"I will wait for you to come back"
Wei Ran followed the other person's words and responded, but at the same time he secretly sighed. Although this girl who looked to be in her early 20s was very well disguised, he could still guess from the other person's clenched hands that she had just
Eighty percent of the things mentioned...are false.
"I'm going to catch mice."
Wei Ran also walked out while he was talking, and at the same time he did not forget to say, "Kona, when the older children come back, can you let them collect firewood with you?"
"It would be best to have so many helpers." Kena immediately nodded in agreement.
Without daring to look at Mrs. Weiya, Wei Ran left the basement where supplies were stored as quickly as possible, and followed his memory to find the three mouse traps arranged yesterday.
Unfortunately, not only are there no mice in these three cages, but even the honey-dipped baits show no signs of being touched. This can only mean that all the mice here have probably been caught long ago.
Could it be that Lidia will send some fish and meat from time to time in the future? Wei Ran muttered secretly and rearranged the three mouse traps in different positions.
This is the third day...
Wei Ran, who felt his eyes turning black when he moved a little bit, leaned against the ruins and took a breath. He silently took out the food box, took out a plate of chocolate from it, and broke off a piece of chocolate that was only half the size of a mahjong piece.
He threw it into his mouth, then put the rest back into the food box and put it into the metal book.
One piece of chocolate a day is the ration he has set for himself. In other words, he has to rely on a plate of chocolate for 24 days.
As for the rest, it must be left to those children, as well as the unknown how long they will have to suffer before boarding the ship, and the new children who will be picked up again.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! After carefully finishing the piece of fragrant chocolate in his mouth, Wei Ran touched his dry belly and stood up. After some adaptation, he waited until the symptoms of dizziness and black eyes.
After disappearing, he dragged the sledge truck and walked through the ruins alone, looking for food and fuel.
But this time, he chose to go to the south of the city, which was relatively closer to the battlefield and more susceptible to bombardment.
After walking through four or five intersections in a row, he also came to the bank of the Neva River. He saw the extremely busy Neva River after it was frozen, and also saw the ruins on the other side of the river that had been turned into ruins under the shelling.
architecture.
Even after crossing the river along the bridge, he saw a Stuka bomber with only half of the fuselage and half of the wing remaining on top of the ruins of a building with only one floor left.
In the bomber, you could barely see a broken body of a German pilot. On the remaining fuselage, there was a Russian reminder written in conspicuous white paint - "Danger! Approach with caution! Be careful nearby."
Scatter ball bombs!”
Hearing this, Wei Ran, who originally wanted to go up and take a look, immediately stopped, but soon his attention was attracted by the half beam on the side of the wreckage of the plane.
When I raised my head and squinted my eyes, I saw the slightly piercing sunshine and the smoke clouds that exploded when anti-aircraft guns fired from time to time. Of course, there were also the German planes flying through the smoke clouds.
Looking around again, Wei Ran hid the sledge after some hesitation, carefully stepped on the broken bricks and tiles, and climbed up to the roof that was still on the first floor.
However, before he could get around the plane, he noticed that under the remaining small half of the wing on the left side of the fuselage, there was actually a twin 24-unit SD2 spherical bomb rack hanging!
Perhaps people in London, England, know best what SD2 spherical bombs are. These things, which are either called butterfly bombs or devil eggs, are one of the most vicious inventions.
But even more deadly than this are the two airdrop racks installed side by side, each capable of mounting 24 SD2 spherical bombs!
What is more deadly than this? Of course, the total of 48 spherical bombs that should be hung on these two twin pylons are at least half scattered around the fuselage!
Not daring to touch those spherical bombs that were more sensitive than the old gun that had been holding it in for thirty years, Wei Ran carefully chose the foothold of each step, and it took him a full five minutes to get around to the other side of the plane.
aside.
When he saw the dense holes in the skin on this side of the fuselage, especially close to the missing wing, he already guessed that the aircraft was probably not torn out by Soviet anti-aircraft firepower, but rather
It was blown down by the spherical bomb it carried.
The reason is that these small bombs are too sensitive, and the Stuka's flexibility and push-back feel are destined to be incompatible with such dangerous things.
This is not an isolated case. As only Weihan knows, Germany's famous or infamous 51st Bomber Wing in World War II had an accident caused by this kind of spherical bomb during Operation Barbarossa.
A total of 15 frames fell down on their own.
On the same day, the same number of bombers of the same wing that were shot down by the Soviets using various weapons were no more than this number.
After staring at the holes in the fuselage skin, Wei Ran looked up at the beams not far away, and finally sighed helplessly. Even if he took down the beams, he would definitely
If it hits the remaining wing of this Stuka, no one can guarantee whether those small bombs, each weighing less than two kilograms, will explode under the concussion, and whether they will explode with him after they explode.
Either put it through a sieve or tear it up and throw it away.
But...after all this, he obviously wouldn't be willing to let him go back empty-handed.
Gritting his teeth, Wei Ran carefully reached into the arms of the broken body in the cabin, hoping to find something valuable.
After all this exploration, he really gained something, but what he took out was only an imco4700 trench lighter and a metal cigarette case that seemed to be made of pure silver.
There was nothing special about the lighter. When he was helping the British guy find gold in the desert, he had gotten one from his K2-generation Egyptian friend. In the world where he grew up, that lighter had always been eaten.
It's lying in the box.
But compared to this mediocre lighter, the silver metal cigarette case is much more luxurious. On one side of the cigarette case, there is a fine embossed eagle emblem of the Second Empire that should no longer exist.
On the other side, there is an extremely rare German retired aircrew medal from World War I.
This thing is only awarded to retired pilots who participated in World War I, or official pilots who served for more than four years before 1936. In addition, it is basically made before World War II, so it is the rarest badge of the Luftwaffe.
one.
The reason why Wei Ran recognized it was naturally because it was rare and valuable. He could even tell by the slightly raised head of the eagle in the middle of the medal that this thing was the best among the badges.
One version.
But looking at the frost-covered corpse of a German pilot, it was obvious that given his age, he was probably not qualified to get this badge—unless he had been flying airplanes since he was born.
Open the cigarette box, lined with red velvet cloth. In the space that could originally hold 20 cigarettes, there are only 12 cigarettes held by silver metal clips. Under one of the cigarettes, there is a black and white picture.
photo.
In this small photo, a Luftwaffe pilot with a duel scar on his face is standing next to a woman in a gorgeous dress, and behind them is what appears to be a civilian biplane.
There was a child who looked to be four or five years old sitting on each of the two seats. On the wing, there was also a large cake that looked very delicious, a bottle of red wine and two glasses, plus
Two baby bottles.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! "You have food, drink, children and a home. You live such a beautiful life and you still want to invade others."
Wei Ran muttered, snapping the metal cigarette case and putting it into his pocket. At the same time, he did not forget to mutter to himself like a lunatic in Chinese that only he could understand.
One sentence, "You're gone? Can't you go back? Your wife is probably going to sleep with another pilot."
Seeing that the cold pilot acquiesced to his statement, after some hesitation, he carefully walked around to the only half-broken wing. After some research, he still did not dare to try to remove the wing.
The possible presence of fuel inside may lead to dangerous behavior.
Carefully leaving the ruins, Wei Ran took out the cigarette case in his pocket again and looked at it, but he just sighed helplessly. This thing couldn't be exchanged for food and drink at all, and he didn't think that the cigarette case in the basement was worth it.
Those kids need this stuff.
Just as he was sitting on the sledge, wondering where to get something to eat and drink, a man dragging a sledge not far away waved to him, and at the same time shouted in a not too loud voice, "Wei
Kedo! Is that you?"
Subconsciously following the sound, Wei Ran reacted for a while. It wasn't until the man pulled down his scarf and limped over that he recognized him. He had just met him yesterday.
Yes, that zoo keeper Matvey!
"It's really you! Why are you here?" Matvey limped over and asked.
"I'm looking for firewood and something to eat."
While Wei Ran shook hands with the other party, he took a look at the objects on the other party's sledge and the canvas covers covering them, and then asked, "Why are you here?"
“I was just passing through”
Matvey pointed to the bridge not far away, "If I want to go to the other side, I must take this street. Besides, I'm here to find you."
"Looking for us?" Wei Ran looked at the other party in confusion, "What are you looking for for us?"
"To visit those children, of course!"
As Matvey spoke, he unceremoniously handed the rope connected to the sledge to Wei Ran, "Help me pull it to where you live. My leg has been sprained for several days. I don't even need to use it."
Not enough strength."
"Aren't these gifts for the children?" Wei Ran asked jokingly, pointing to the things on the other person's sledge.
"Of course a gift for the kids"
Matvey sat down on Weiran's sledge and said while calming down, "But after they accept the gifts, I will take them back."
"Bring back?"
Wei Ran looked at the other party in confusion, but before Matvey could speak, there was an ugly drake voice inside the canvas cover saying in Russian, "Comrades! Classmates! The performance will begin soon."
It’s about to begin! Please look here! Yes! Look here! This is it!”
"King Si Qi, shut up!" Matvey patted the thick canvas cover, "Save your energy, it's not the time for you idiot to show off yet."
"This is... a parrot?" Wei Ran looked at Matvey in surprise. "No, no, no, you should call it an actor. The little guys here are all the best actors."
Matvey said with a proud face, "Comrade Victor, please believe that their performance will definitely bring joy and hope to the children."
