The lunch was quite sumptuous, and the meal did have a Chinese flavor.
The kitchen was originally a stove for burning briquettes and stewing soup. Yang Mingzhi asked to use the iron pot for stewing meat as a wok.
Oriental cooking skills opened the eyes of maid Anne, who calls herself a "senior chef".
With great enthusiasm for learning, she is eager to improve her cooking skills in the shortest possible time, especially how to fry shredded potatoes.
Yang Mingzhi has been using chopsticks to eat in the Guerrilla Republic, and a lot of soldiers and civilians are also willing to learn to use two wooden sticks to eat. The use of chopsticks requires a long time of practice, and when you first come into contact with it, whether it is the maid Anne or the newly promoted guards,
Everyone feels that their hands-on ability has been seriously affected.
Why are the general and his wife's hands so flexible? Incredibly flexible? Just like the general can make magical tricks out of simple ingredients, that's even more incredible!
"Okay! We didn't waste anything. The last food has been eaten."
Yang Mingzhi patted his belly and looked satisfied.
Look at his appearance, he seems to have no nostalgia for Moscow. Star Tao licked the wooden chopsticks he brought back from the Guerrilla Republic, and said with a hint of sadness: "We...we are going to go further. I still have some worries."
Worried, I really don’t know what life will be like there.”
"Don't worry, everything will be fine. My dear, you should understand that that place is very much like our hometown in the Northeast, except that the residents are all old men. Maybe you will feel some intimacy when you get there."
"Maybe." Star Tao shook his head, "I would like to go to a warmer place. Belarus is quite good. Our hometown, Nagada, is so cold in winter that it can freeze your brain to pieces and even freeze a tiger.
Popsicles.”
"Afraid of the cold? That's not a problem. When the war is over, I won't have one million rubles here, maybe ten million. By then we will build a villa in Sochi, and from now on our family of three will go there every summer.
Have fun there. Can you imagine? Beautiful beaches and warm sea breeze.”
Yang Tao looked at her husband. He looked really lazy. He was leaning against the seat and tapping his legs, as if he had clearly arranged his future life.
She couldn't help but sneer: "How come we are a family of three? If my belly is too strong, I will give you several babies."
"Okay, I am what I say. If you can take care of me, we will give birth to an infantry squad. By then, Khrushchev will have to award you with the Heroic Mother Medal!"
"What? Who is Khrushchev?"
"It's nothing." Realizing that he had slipped his words, Yang Mingzhi sat upright. "We've finished the meal, and we have to finish it from beginning to end. Now, without bothering Annie, I'll put away all these plates, and you can save the chopsticks and spoons."
OK. Do you understand?"
"oh……"
You must take what belongs to you. There are already things in the house. Yang Mingzhi will never be greedy. He didn't even take away a bowl. This is not only out of his principles, but also to deliberately create a good image of integrity.
.
He knew very well that Stalin would always give favors to his supporters, but this was no reason to be greedy. In that dimension, Marshal Zhukov was so angry that he took the loot of ten railroad cars in Berlin and moved it to his home.
Stalin was furious and finally sent him to a remote military area for retirement as punishment.
Adhering to the principle of incorruptibility and not being poor, as long as things are done reasonably and legally in accordance with the Soviet system, it is possible to get rich. It all depends on whether the person concerned wants to use his brain and whether he has the ability to get rich.
Yang Mingzhi was thinking that when his family moved to Novosibirsk, it was not a bitter and cold place, but a new starting point for his future success!
…
A car and two trucks drove to the door of Yang Mingzhi's house at 1:30 in the afternoon, and a man wearing a leather jacket and a blue hat got out. The visitor was none other than his old friend Captain Larin.
"Oh, my dear general! I have been ordered to bring you..."
The captain saw the waiting general and his wife, and also saw the many boxes placed in the courtyard, and couldn't help being shocked: "Comrade General! These...are these your luggage?"
"Yes. Isn't it surprising?"
"Of course! I originally thought that the trunk of a car would be enough. Considering that you bought a lot of things in the past few days, you brought an extra truck. It seems that I made the most correct choice."
Yang Mingzhi walked straight over and took a closer look at the new driver. A sense of familiarity came over him: "This... this seems to be an American product? A Dodge truck?"
"Your goods are real. Yes, the quality of American products is very good, and the great alliance will surely catch up in the future. Now that we have arrived, your large amount of luggage will be loaded on the truck." After saying that, the captain smiled softly: "
I'd like to ask, what are you pretending to be?"
"Mainly food, and gifts from your Ministry of Internal Affairs. I must tell you that I am a very principled person. I did not take anything that was not mine, although the blankets and soft beds here are very comfortable."
The captain shrugged: "Actually, it doesn't matter if you take it." He skillfully took out a cigarette from his pocket and looked at the house with all the broken glass with a sad look, then glanced at the fallen tree and broken wall.
, chatting freely: "Well, even if you leave, no one will live in this house for a long time."
"What? The house will be vacant? Why?"
"Why else? Look at all this. The city has just suffered an air raid. I am afraid that after this attack, a large number of high-level left-behind personnel will continue to retreat to Kuibyshev. More citizens will also have to relocate. I am even worried that,
The next German air raid could level this place."
"You are too pessimistic. The enemy's new weapons are not unsolvable. The army will adjust its tactics and Moscow will be safe."
"I hope so. I hope you have the ability to help us win an early victory. And I, I will continue to stay in Moscow."
"I understand that you are not afraid of all difficulties."
"No, you think I'm too conscious." The captain quickly finished his cigarette and stamped out the smoking cigarette butt. "We held a meeting last night and decided that all the comrades who stayed behind would have their salaries increased and their allowances increased.
times, priority for promotion, and priority for housing after the war is won. If you want a better life, you have to take risks, that’s what I think.”
"Haha, it seems we are in the same boat. Now, I have to ask my people to load all the goods into the train. Can you tell me, when will the train leave?"
"If nothing else, it will be 3:30 in the afternoon."
"What? There are only two hours left."
"It's not a problem." The captain still looked indifferent, "You have plenty of time. In Moscow, it's normal for trains to be delayed. Those railway workers will desperately add more vacant trains to send to the east, all just to bring back more trains.
Arms and armies. That’s a complicated and time-consuming job, I hope you understand.”
"I understand. I hope everything is still normal at the train station after yesterday's bombing."
The heaviest of all the goods was grain, while the rest were quite light.
One truck was loaded with goods, and the other truck was filled with all the guards headed by Second Lieutenant Grischenko. Anne, the cook, also squeezed in.
The convoy set off, and Yang Mingzhi sat in the passenger seat of the car and watched his home go further and further away. In his heart, there was only infinite yearning for the future life.
"Captain, I'm very worried now about who will pick me up when I get to Novosibirsk."
"You don't have to worry about this at all. The Ministry of Internal Affairs has sent comrades, and they are already waiting on the queue. They will first escort your group and all the luggage to the Academy of Sciences. Those comrades you brought back, especially
Your comrades in the design bureau are already looking forward to your arrival."
"That's great, looks like I'll be getting back to work quickly."
Yang Mingzhi has great enthusiasm for his work. He does not have the so-called "huge enthusiasm for building the Soviet Union", but simply wants to show off his magical powers.
…
The motorcade headed northeast along Communist Youth League Street. Yang Mingzhi noticed that he had returned to the place where he took the photos in the morning.
"Perhaps I could have urged the curator at that time, and maybe I would have had the framed photo in hand."
Yang Mingzhi didn't think much about it. The motorcade continued to move forward. Soon, he heard the Cultural Square subway station where he took refuge yesterday, then bypassed the Kremlin and passed through the Red Square. By now, Yang Mingzhi no longer knew where this place was.
of urban areas.
"Captain, which train station are we going to?"
"Go to Kazan Station."
"Oh? A very novel name. I once simply thought that there is only one largest train station in Moscow, just like a person has only one heart."
"No, Comrade General. There are many train stations in Moscow. It seems that you don't know the ropes here at all."
After all, Captain Larin knew a lot about Moscow, and he also knew a lot about railway issues.
It turns out that the naming method of Moscow train stations is simple and crude, and its simplicity is completely beyond Yang Mingzhi's imagination. He originally thought that since Moscow is very big, it is reasonable to have multiple train stations. But he should have a central station named "
"Moscow Station". Other railway stations in the south of the city should be called "Moscow South Station". Or if they are still in the Tver district, they should be called "Tver Station".
This turned out not to be the case at all.
The train mainly goes to Leningrad, which is called Leningrad Station. The train mainly goes to Kazan, which is called Kazan Station.
Kazan is just east of Moscow, continuing along the eastward railway, passing through Nizhny Novgorod, Kazan, Ufa, Chelyabinsk, Omsk, and finally arriving in Novosibirsk.
Captain Lalin introduced the eastward route. Yang Mingzhi had some knowledge of the cities on the route.
Especially the city of Kazan. Hundreds of years ago, it took the Grand Duchy of Moscow a hundred years to conquer the Kazan Khanate. After completing this feat, the Principality of Muscovy began its crazy overland expansion, and then upgraded to Tsarist Russia. This kind of
The obsession with land has continued to this day, and coupled with the ideal of "rescuing the suffering people of the world", there is a great reason for military expansion. And this is perhaps what Stalinism is most criticized for.
But Yang Mingzhi was a little surprised by this route.
He asked the captain who was driving: "Last spring, my unit was transferred to Belarus and passed through Sverdlovsk (Yekaterinburg). Why was there no route you provided? That is really a big city."
"Haha, you compare Moscow's train station to a heart. Moscow has several hearts, but the aorta and veins are limited. If a train full of arms goes to Moscow, it will most likely pass through Sverdlovsk. You
To go to the east, we even have to pass through Kazakhstan."
Yang Mingzhi nodded: "I hope I have a Soviet traffic map in my hand. I understand what you said. I hope this will be a long and exciting trip."
"Excited?" The captain shook his head, "Flying is the fastest way, but your superiors are very worried about the plane. No matter what, you must arrive in Novosibirsk absolutely safely. Obviously taking a military train is the safest. What awaits you will be
It’s a multi-day journey, I hope you won’t be bored and irritated by the long journey.”
Yang Mingzhi shrugged indifferently: "Fortunately, I brought a few books, especially those by Ostrovsky and Gorky. In fact, it is also wonderful to enjoy the scenery outside the window."
"You are really imaginative." The captain clicked his tongue and said seriously: "What awaits you will be a journey of three thousand kilometers. Even if I am not very good at mathematics, I can understand that even if the military column maintains a speed of fifty kilometers per hour, it will definitely be
How many days will it take to travel?”
"Wow! This distance is really..." At this moment, Yang Mingzhi remembered the long journey from the Far East to Minsk last year, when the military train ran for eight consecutive days!
Three thousand kilometers, with the power of the steam locomotive in this time and space, and also taking into account the performance of the Russian broad gauge inherited by the Soviet Union, how is it possible for the military train to maintain a speed of fifty kilometers? Every time it reaches a large station, the train must stop to add water and coal. Railways
Workers still need time to check.
The maintenance of steam trains in this time and space is more time-consuming and laborious. How much time is consumed in this?
"Perhaps, by the time I arrive in Novosibirsk, it will be September 10th at the earliest."
The captain shrugged: "In this matter, I should be able to understand their timetable once I get on the train. Please note that we are almost at the Communist Youth League Square. You will soon see the Kazan Railway Station, and the minaret is its symbol.
"
There are no tall buildings in Moscow in this time and space. There are a large number of five-story "Stalin buildings" that are the residences of citizens. They are uniformly constructed according to the same model. However, the various buildings left over from the Tsarist era are very different from the new ones built later.
The Kazan Railway Station was built during the Tsarist period. However, Tsarist Russia collapsed just after the railway station was completed. The Soviet Union continued to improve it in the 1920s and placed a large red five-pointed star on the top of the bell tower spire.
Now that the entire city of Moscow is under air defense camouflage, the five-pointed star has naturally been removed. Its spire stands out among the many low-rise buildings. Yang Mingzhi can still see its scenery and even the hanging clock from a distance.
"Not bad, it's almost half past two, we do have plenty of time."
The captain then said, "I will send you directly to the station to meet with the comrades there. At this point, my mission is completed, Comrade General."
"Here...it sounds like you're still a little bit reluctant to let go?"
"Hey, there are some. You have a special charm. If I follow you, I may get greater honors. I really envy those comrades, especially that Grishenko. Now, I guess that person will be happy with himself.
Wonderful encounter.”
"You have received the award. Maybe...maybe it is a fact. I am not being modest here. I can train many excellent officers and many excellent weapons design experts. As for you, I can see that Comrade Stalin is very fond of you.
Thank you very much. You should continue to work hard. I can guarantee that your career will gain greater glory."
"Okay, thank you...you see, the train station has arrived." (To be continued)