Sokov came out of the post office and looked around, thinking that he would leave the city tomorrow and it would be a worthwhile trip to wander around before leaving.

The soldier following behind saw what Sokov was thinking and said quickly: "Comrade commander, where do you plan to go next?"

“I plan to walk around.” Sokov said to the soldiers: “If you don’t want to follow, you can go back first. Anyway, the city is full of our people, so I shouldn’t encounter any danger.”

"No, Comrade Commander." The soldier who spoke was very skillful. He did not address Sokov's military rank, but directly addressed him as the commander in general. This way, even if others heard their conversation, they would not be concerned about Sokov's military rank. Suspicion arises about identity: "Our mission is to accompany you, and we cannot leave your side until you return to the guest house."

Sokov had a very good impression of this soldier, and asked with a smile: "Comrade soldier, I don't know what to call you?"

“Kasan, comrade commander.” The soldier replied, “Just call me Kasan. This is my fellow soldier, named Michman.”

 “Kasan,” Sokov then asked, “how long have you been in the army?”

“Mitchman and I both enlisted in the army in August 1944, and it will be one year soon.”

 “What did you do before joining the army?”

“We are both workers at the Moscow Metallurgical Foundry. I am a mechanic and Michman is a sand foundry.”

ˆ Sokov knew very well that in the Soviet Union, which was dominated by heavy industry, units such as steel plants, foundries and military factories had very good welfare benefits. Being a worker in a factory is far better than being a soldier: "Since you all have good jobs, why do you want to be a soldier?"

"How should I put it?" Kasan said hesitantly: "After the war broke out, the main equipment and most of the technical backbone of our factory came to the Far East. In addition, hundreds of people joined the militia division, and only three-thirds One of them maintained daily production. Michman and I were still young at the time, so our requests to serve as soldiers were rejected and we could only continue to work in the factory. Last year, a commander from the Ministry of Internal Affairs came to the factory to recruit soldiers. Michman and I Man applied again and was lucky enough to be selected.”

“So, after joining the army, you have stayed in Moscow and never been on the battlefield?”

"Yes, Comrade Commander." Hearing Sokov's question, Kassan replied with a blushing face: "To tell you the truth, after we joined the army, apart from firing thirty rounds of ammunition during recruit training, we never There was no live firing.”

“A new battle will begin soon. Although you are responsible for the security of the headquarters and there is little chance of directly participating in the battle, we do not rule out fighting the infiltrated enemy. Are you afraid?”

"I'm not afraid." Kasan shook his head and said, "The other day I heard that you had a gunfight with the spy who had infiltrated in the restaurant. I was quite scared at the time. When I followed Comrade Major to the restaurant, I saw the spy who was killed by you. At that time, I discovered that the enemy is just like us, they have one nose and two eyes, and they will suffer the same pain and death if they are hit by bullets. There is nothing to be afraid of. "

"Kasan, actually I was quite scared when I went to the battlefield for the first time." Sokov has basically stayed in the headquarters in the past few years. The people he comes into contact with are either commanders at all levels or staff members. The other party gave orders, but there was still very little casual chatting like this: "I am deeply afraid that a flying bullet will kill me."

"Comrade Commander," Kasan said quickly, obviously knowing Sokov's past achievements, "I heard that the first time you joined the soldiers was when you led a garrison squad to block the German reconnaissance camp in the town of Khimki. With a dozen men and rudimentary equipment, they blocked the attack of a German battalion..."

“Wait a minute, Kasan.” When Sokov heard this, he quickly interrupted Kasan and asked, “Where did you hear all this?”

“That’s how the legend goes.” Kassan shrugged and said, “I think there’s nothing wrong with it.”

"Kasan, the first battle I participated in was indeed to stop the enemy in the town of Khimki." In order to prevent rumors from spreading in the future, Sokov explained to Kasan: "But the enemy is not a battalion, but a battalion. There were only twenty or thirty people in an advance team of the reconnaissance battalion. And until the end of our battle, there were not many people left. At the most critical moment, it was the militia battalion from the instrument factory who arrived and completely eliminated the enemy. Squad.”

“So that’s it?” Kassan said with some surprise: “But what we know about the situation is just like what I just said.”

"Kasan, I think this may be the need for propaganda to boost morale." Sokov said with a wry smile: "Now that the Germans have been defeated by us, the truth should also surface."

The three of them walked forward and came to a church. Seeing many people coming in and out, Sokov couldn't help but have a surprised expression on his face. He clearly remembered that the church was outlawed in the 1930s, and all religious gatherings, propaganda and other activities were banned. All clergy were either executed or sent to dig potatoes in Siberia. After the war broke out, the regulations outlawing the church were changed, and some clergy who had been assigned were allowed to return to their original churches.

But since Sokov has been on the front line, the churches in the city are usually used as headquarters, and there are no clergy stationed there at all. Therefore, it is a bit surprising to see such a popular church.

Kasan saw Sokov staring at the church and couldn't help but asked: "Comrade commander, what are you looking at?"

“I’m looking at this church.” Sokov pointed to the church not far away and said, “There are a lot of people coming in and out.”

"Comrade Commander, I'm afraid you don't know that you have been on the front line for a long time." Kasan said to Sokov: "Since 1943, the relevant parties have issued new regulations: stop all anti-religious propaganda; Under certain circumstances and regulations, religious patriarchs can conduct sermons, speeches and other activities in the country; religious publications can be circulated among believers."

“Oh, it turns out there is such a rule. This is the first time I’ve heard of it.”

"Comrade Commander." Michman, who had never spoken, suddenly interjected: "There is a rumor among the people that after the outbreak of the Great Patriotic War, a bishop in Leningrad locked himself in a stone chamber and prayed devoutly to the motherland. . Suddenly, a fire was lit in the stone chamber, and the Virgin appeared in the light of the fire and told the bishop that only by releasing all priests and bishops and reopening churches and monasteries could the country regain the protection of the Holy Spirit. In addition, Our Lady also said that Leningrad must not be abandoned, and that the statue of Our Lady in Kazan should be moved to Leningrad to circle the city, then moved to Moscow for prayers, and finally moved to Stalingrad..."

After listening to Mickey Man's story, Sokov couldn't help laughing: "Mich Man, don't you think the story you told is too fantasy? Parade around three cities carrying the statue of the Virgin. Can we defeat the enemy by praying?" After Sokov finished speaking, Kasan quickly explained: "Comrade Commander, although this rumor sounds absurd, it spread out from somewhere, and then it was like The plague spread. You know, although religion was restricted and banned as early as the 1930s, most people still retained a sense of identity with religion. In addition, it was a special period at that time, so the influence of this rumor was infinitely magnified. . It is said that after the Supreme Commander himself learned the news, after careful consideration, he felt that under such circumstances, the reasonable use of religion would be conducive to uniting the military and the people, so he introduced the regulations I just mentioned.

Later facts proved that this decision made by the supreme commander himself finally achieved a win-win outcome: religion was legalized to a certain extent. With the help of the church, the domestic military and civilians were more united, and the army successfully defended Moscow and Leningrad. and Stalingrad and other important cities, and finally turned defeat into victory step by step and won the final victory. "

“Kasan, Michman, since we have arrived at the church, we might as well go in and take a look.”

 The three of them crossed the road and entered the church.

There was a mass going on in the church at the moment. The lights in the hall were turned off and only the candles held by the believers were lighting up. Although Sokov was not familiar with this aspect, when he saw that both Kasan and Michman had taken off their boat-shaped hats, he also quickly took off his own big-brimmed hat.

 After the Mass, the lights in the hall were turned on again.

 The believers came forward one by one, kissed the cross in the bishop's hand and the back of the bishop's hand, and whispered their wishes to him. Usually in this situation, the bishop will lean forward slightly and whisper a blessing to the other party.

 Sokov watched the believers come forward, kiss the cross and the back of the bishop's hand, express their wishes, and receive the bishop's blessing. The whole process did not take more than ten seconds. But soon he discovered a young girl wearing a headscarf. After kissing the cross and the back of her hand, she whispered several words to the bishop. After hearing this, the bishop frowned slightly and leaned closer to the girl's ear to say something. What. The two of them were like this, talking to each other for a minute or two.

 This abnormal phenomenon was not only noticed by Sokov, but also by Kasan. He turned to Sokov and said: "Comrade Commander, have you seen that girl? She spent too long talking to the bishop."

"Yes, Kasan." Sokov nodded slightly and said, "It looks a bit suspicious."

Sokov said it casually, but it aroused Kasan's vigilance. He looked left and right, and then asked Sokov in a low voice: "Comrade commander, do you think the two of them are talking to each other?"

"Joining?!" Sokov was startled by Kasan's words. If the girl in the headscarf was really having **** with the bishop, it would be a bit too bold. In the public eye, wouldn't she be afraid of being discovered by others? "Kasan, isn't this too blatant?"

"This kind of connection is undoubtedly the most ideal, and it is not easy to attract other people's attention." Kasang expressed his suspicion: "You know, even if the two of them are meeting, in the eyes of other believers, this girl is just a Tell the priest your wish. The more wishes you make, the longer you will naturally speak."

"It makes sense, it makes sense." Sokov felt that what Kasan said was very reasonable, so he whispered to him: "When this girl leaves the church later, we will follow her quietly to see if there is anything unexpected. harvest.”

"Okay, Comrade Commander." After Kasan finished speaking, he touched Mickey Man next to him with his elbow: "Michigan, did you hear it?"

"Don't worry, Kasan." Michman said angrily, "I've been listening."

"We stand too conspicuously here." Sokov said to the two of them: "We'd better go out and wait."

The three of them came out of the church and saw a small tanker selling kvass. Sokov took the lead and walked over and said to the two of them: "I'll treat you to a drink of kvass." Then he said to the aunt selling kvass, "Excuse me. Give us three kvass.”

After Kasan took a sip of kvass, he asked Sokov tentatively: "Comrade commander, do you need to go back and call a few more people?"

"No need." Sokov shook his head and said, "We just have suspicions, but we don't have any evidence. If we really call for help, it will not end well if we find out that we have made a big mistake. ”

Seeing the nervous look on Kassan's face, Sokov smiled and said: "Don't worry, Kassan. She is just a little girl, can't the three of us still be able to deal with her?"

"I'm not worried if she is alone." Kasan said: "I am worried that she will find out that we are following her later and intentionally take us to her accomplices. Then we may suffer a loss."

"Kasan, you don't have to worry about this." Sokov stared at the assault rifle slung on Kasan's shoulder: "The rifle you are carrying was developed by me. As long as you have this gun in your hand, even ten I won’t even look down on eight enemies.”

“What, you developed this gun?” Kasan’s eyes widened in surprise: “Is it true, Comrade Commander?”

“Of course it’s true.” Sokov handed the cup with kvass to Micheman, stretched out his hand to Kasan, “Show me your gun.”

Kasan did not dare to neglect, and quickly took off the assault rifle from his shoulder and handed it to Sokov.

Sokov took the rifle, took off the magazine first and saw that it was full of bullets. He nodded with satisfaction and put it back in again. Then after checking it carefully, he handed the gun back to Kasan: "The gun is well maintained. Even if I go into battle at this time, I am sure to use this gun to deal with at least one squad of enemies."

Kasan, who was still a little uneasy at first, felt more at ease when he heard Sokov said that he could use this gun to deal with at least one squad of enemies. He knew very well that Sokov was definitely not bragging when he said this. If you are an enemy in the same class, then when you follow that girl later, even if you encounter any ambush, you can escape completely. Moreover, Khabarovsk is still under military control. As soon as a gunshot is fired, a nearby patrol team will arrive in a few minutes to provide support. By then, the enemy who ambushed us will be unable to escape.