On the way back to the city, Bezikov took the initiative to explain to Sokov: "Comrade General, when I asked my subordinates to send the three hooligans to the police duty point just now, I deliberately said that you were Major Matevosian. To conceal your official identity. You must know that you are about to perform an important mission. If you do not use a false identity, your whereabouts will be exposed and you will cause unnecessary trouble."

Sokov understood Bezikov's explanation very well. After all, even Marshal Vasilevsky had concealed his true identity, let alone an ordinary general. He nodded and said in agreement. : "Comrade Major, you did the right thing."

Seeing that Sokov did not blame himself for this, Bezikov felt much more at ease. Just when he was secretly relieved, he heard Sokov ask again: "Comrade Lukin, where are you now?"

"Comrade General, I was just about to report this to you." Bezikov said: "This morning, Comrade Lukin has been restored to military status and still has the rank of lieutenant general. Now he has left the nursing home and been placed in a In a guest house on Albert Street. Do you want to see him?"

"That's what I meant." Sokov nodded and said, "Major Bezikov, please take me to Comrade Lukin's residence."

Bezikov had obviously expected that Sokov would visit Lukin, so he told the driver: "Go to Arbat Street."

 Half an hour later, the small convoy arrived at a guest house on Arbat Street. When the soldiers on duty at the gate saw the special pass on the front glass, they opened the gate without stopping and let the convoy in.

 After getting off the car, Bezikov took Sokov into the guest house.

Seeing Bezikov's arrival, the waiter at the front desk hurriedly greeted him: "Comrade Major, you are here!" She glanced at Sokov, who was wearing casual clothes next to Bezikov, and asked curiously, "I don't know. Who is this?"

“This is Major Matevosyan.” Bezikov replied without changing his face or heartbeat: “He came with me to visit Comrade Lukin.”

Knowing that he was here to visit Lukin and that Bezikov was accompanying him, the waiter did not question Sokov's origins, but said to Bezikov: "Comrade Major, Comrade Lukin is resting in his room at the moment. , you can go to him directly."

After Bezikov thanked the waiter, he took Sokov up to the second floor and came to the door of a room. He raised his hand and knocked lightly on the door a few times. Soon, he heard a voice coming from inside: "Who is outside? Please come in!"

Bezikov opened the door and walked in. He smiled at Lukin who was sitting in the wheelchair and said, "Comrade General, I'm here to see you again. Look, who did I bring?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Sokov walked into the room from behind him and said to Lukin: "Hello, Comrade Lukin, we meet again."

Wearing a brand new military uniform, Lu Jin is still sitting in a wheelchair, but his whole spirit is different. When he saw Sokov's appearance, a knowing smile appeared on his face: "It turns out to be Misha. I was just about to ask Major Bezikov to contact you, but you came first. Stop standing there. , please take a seat quickly."

Sokov pulled up a chair and sat down next to Lukin's wheelchair. After looking him up and down, he nodded and said, "Not bad, Comrade Lukin, you are most powerful when you are still wearing a military uniform."

Lu Jin looked down at the military uniform on his body and said with emotion: "I never thought that after I came out of the German concentration camp alive, I would have the opportunity to wear this military uniform again."

“Comrade Lukin,” Sokov said to Lukin, “I believe you already know that yesterday Comrade Stalin personally appointed me as the commander of the 53rd Army, Yakov as the chief of staff, and you as my deputy commander.”

"Yes, Misha, I already know the news." Lu Jin nodded and said, "Don't worry, I will fully cooperate with you on this trip to the Far East."

Sokov was very satisfied with Lukin's answer. He turned to Bezikov who was standing next to him and asked: "Comrade Major, do you know when we will leave Moscow?"

“Tomorrow morning!” Bezikov said: “According to the order from your superiors, you will first take the train to Chelyabinsk, where you will transfer to Khabarovsk to attend the Supreme Military Conference of the Far Eastern Forces.”

Sokov remembered that the distance from Moscow to Khabarovsk was more than 8,300 kilometers. Even if he could take a plane halfway, the time it would take would not be too short, so he asked tentatively: "I don't know the top military officer of the Far Eastern Army?" How many days will the meeting be held?"

Bezikov heard Sokov's worry from his tone, and quickly explained: "General Sokov, don't worry, the meeting will be held in a week, and you have enough time to get to Khabarovsk." .”

"That's good, that's good." Sokov nodded and said, "As long as it doesn't delay the meeting."

He glanced at Lu Jin who was sitting in a wheelchair and continued to ask: "I wonder if my deputy commander and chief of staff also need to conceal their identities?"

"That's not necessary." Bezikov shook his head and said, "Whether it's Lieutenant General Lukin or Major General Yakov, their reputations can't be compared to yours. Even the spies who were young knew that the two of them had arrived in the Far East. , it will not attract enough attention, so there is no need to conceal the identity.”

“Comrade Major, there is one more thing.” Sokov said to Bezikov: “When I was in the 48th Army, there was an officer responsible for security around me...”

Unexpectedly, before Sokov finished speaking, Bezikov rushed to say: "General Sokov, I know you are talking about Captain Koshkin. He turned out to be the deputy minister of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, General Lunev." Subordinate, he has been protecting your safety for more than a year."

"Yes, it is indeed like this." After confirming Bezikov's statement, Sokov asked tentatively: "I wonder if he can also be transferred to the 53rd Army and continue to be responsible for the security of my headquarters. ?”

"Sorry, General Sokov, I think this may not be possible." Bezikov explained to Sokov: "Shortly after you left Germany, he and General Lunev had returned to Moscow and returned to the Ministry of Internal Affairs. I can’t continue to follow you at work.”

"Then who will be responsible for the security of our headquarters?" Sokov clearly remembered that in several movies he had watched, the Japanese pirates were unwilling to accept their failure and sent out agents, disguised as anti-union fighters. members, sneaked into the Soviet headquarters to carry out assassination operations. One general died at the hands of agents in his childhood due to negligence. This time he went to the Far East. If he didn't have a reliable subordinate to protect the safety of the headquarters, Sokov was worried that something like this would happen to him. Facing the question raised by Sokov, Bezikov smiled faintly and replied: "General Sokov, you don't have to worry about this at all. I have received orders from my superiors. From now on, until you return to Moscow During this period of time, I have been responsible for managing the security forces of the 53rd Army Headquarters. We have very rich experience in security, and I believe that with us by your side, your life safety will be guaranteed."

Sokov knew very well that although Bezikov was tasked with protecting his own safety, he probably also accepted the task of monitoring himself. However, he did not tell the truth, but smiled and nodded, and said: "Comrade Major, if you are responsible for the safety of the headquarters, then I will be completely relieved. Comrade Deputy Commander, don't you think so?" He The next sentence was asked to Lu Jin who was sitting next to him.

"That's right." Lukin and Bezikov stayed in the sanatorium for a long time, and they got to know each other somewhat. He felt that he could rest assured that the other party would be responsible for the safety of the headquarters, so he said with a smile. : "As long as Comrade Major can be as responsible as the sanatorium, we will not have to worry about safety issues during our operations in the Far East."

“By the way, where is General Yakov?” Sokov asked Bezikov again, “Where is he now?”

“He is still staying at his home.” Bezikov said: “But on the day of departure, he will meet you at the station.”

 Early the next morning, Bezikov came to Sokov's residence and urged him to set off.

Fortunately, Sokov wrote a letter to Asya last night. Seeing Bezikov telling him to leave now, he put the letter on the kitchen table. As long as Asya came home and walked into the kitchen, he would I can see the letter I left for her.

After doing all this, Sokov waved to Bezikov and said: "Let's go, Comrade Major, it's time for us to set off."

But Bezikov stood there without moving. He handed a small suitcase in his hand to Sokov: "General Sokov, this is your new military uniform."

Hearing that it was his new military uniform, Sokov couldn't help but be startled, but he still took the box and opened it. Inside was a brand new military uniform, but the epaulettes were with the rank of major. Sokov immediately understood that this was a military uniform specially prepared for him by his superiors to disguise himself, so he smiled and said: "Comrade Major, if you didn't remind me, I almost forgot my current identity, which is Major Matievosyan. Just wait a minute, I'll put on this new uniform right away."

Sokov followed Bezikov to the train station and got on the train to Chelyabinsk.

However, the carriage he was in was not a private room for three or four people as he imagined, but an entire carriage that had been converted into a combat conference room.

Looking at the desk, sofa and leather armchair placed in the carriage, as well as the map hanging on one side of the carriage, Sokov couldn't help but said to Yakov in surprise: "Yasha, I really didn't expect that you changed the carriage into into the war conference room."

Yakov sat carelessly at his desk, reached out and turned on the lamp with a red shade on the table, and said to Sokov: "Misha, it takes two days to get from Moscow to Chelyabinsk. I don’t want to stay in a small private room during this time. Look, how spacious it is here. Not only is the space spacious, but when we have nothing to do, we can also study battle maps and discuss how to fight future battles."

"Yakov is right." Lu Jin said next to him: "Although we don't know the superior's combat intentions yet, it is very necessary to familiarize ourselves with the terrain of the combat area early. In this way, after accepting the mission, we can according to the requirements Understand the situation and formulate correct battle plans in a timely manner.”

Sokov tried hard to recall the offensive routes of the three Soviet front armies. However, because the battle lasted too short, the arrogant Kwantung Army was defeated and was forced to lay down its weapons and surrender to the Soviet army. Therefore, he I can’t remember the specific offensive route at all.

“Misha,” Yakov asked, “How long do you think this Far East campaign will last? Can the Kwantung Army be completely defeated within three months?”

Hearing what Yakov said, Sokov couldn't help but smile lightly, thinking that although the Kwantung Army was said to have millions of soldiers, most of their elites were transferred to the Pacific battlefield and were wiped out bit by bit in the duel with the US military. , most of the troops remaining in the Far East are newly recruited, and their combat effectiveness is not the same as in previous years.

Seeing Sokov smiling and saying nothing, Lukin said, "Misha, before you came, Yakov and I were discussing how long this battle would last."

Sokov asked curiously: "What was the outcome of the discussion?"

Lu Jin glanced at Yakov and continued: "According to Yakov, no matter how weak the Kwantung Army's combat effectiveness is, it still has millions of people. Even if we have an advantage in strength and equipment, we must completely defeat them. I’m afraid it will take more than half a year.”

Sokov remembered what Yakov had just asked him, and asked tentatively: "Comrade Deputy Commander, if I am not mistaken, do you think our army will be able to completely defeat the Kwantung Army within three months?" ?”

 “Yeah, that’s what I think.”

“Comrade Deputy Commander, I think your speculation is too conservative.”

Originally Lukin said that the Kwantung Army could be completely defeated within three months, but this was refuted by Yakov. But at this moment, the two of them listened to Sokov's words, and it seemed that he felt that the Far East battle would take less time. Out of curiosity, Yakov asked cautiously: "Misha, do you think it will take more than three months for our army to defeat the Kwantung Army?"

 “Yes, Yasha, that’s what I think.”

"Can you tell me your reasons?" Yakov knew that Sokov's judgment of the situation had never been wrong. Since he said that it would take less than three months to completely defeat the Kwantung Army, he did not argue with him. Argue, but humbly ask for advice.

"I want to remind you that the Kwantung Army is now entrenched in the northeastern region of China." Sokov said seriously: "Since 1931, the military and civilians of this country have been fighting unrelentingly against the Japanese enemies. Although their The army's equipment was backward and its training was seriously insufficient, but it still caused huge losses to the Japanese pirates over a period of 14 years. The Kwantung Army just mentioned was no longer the one that fought against the Japanese at Zhanggufeng in 1938 and Nomenkan in 1939. The force our army is fighting has been severely weakened by the tenacious attacks of the Chinese military and civilians. As long as our army launches a large-scale attack, it will not last long and will be completely defeated."

After hearing this, Lu Jin nodded slowly and said, "If everything is really as Misha said, I think the next battle in the Far East will be easier than any of your battles on the Western Front."