red moscow

Chapter 2787 Tolstoy Manor

Sokov remained silent. If Potapov didn't trust him, no matter how much he said, the other party wouldn't listen.

Potapov finished his words in one breath, and suddenly found that Sokov, who was standing beside him, did not respond to his words. His expression became unusually solemn. He immediately had a bad premonition in his heart. According to his understanding of Sokov, the other party must have thought carefully before saying this, and it was definitely not a lie. It was with this in mind that he asked cautiously: "Major Sokov, is it really possible that the Germans have taken Tolstoy's remains?"

"Comrade Commander, I am only saying that there is such a possibility," Sokov replied. "We cannot pin our hopes on the Germans, expecting them to have enough bottom line and not do anything excessive with Count Tolstoy's remains."

"In this case, it is absolutely necessary to move Tolstoy's remains."

Sokov thought of how during the Great Patriotic War, Tolstoy's grave was dug up by Guderian's men; Bagration's grave on Borodino Hill was destroyed by the German artillery fire, and only a few broken bones were found and reburied.

"If we have the ability, I would suggest moving Tolstoy's grave to another area and moving it back after the war is over."

Potapov thought quickly in his mind. Although he was responsible for the defense of the Orel-Tula area, relocating Tolstoy's grave was not a trivial matter and was not within his jurisdiction at all.

"Major Sokov, even though I am the commander of the 1st Guards Army, I am responsible for the defense of Orel-Tula." Potapov said cautiously: "For things like relocating Tolstoy's grave, we need to contact the local leaders and let them make the decision. How about this, tomorrow morning, you go to the town of Yasnaya Polyana, find the local person in charge, tell them your idea, and see if they have any ideas."

"Okay, Comrade Commander." Seeing that Potapov agreed to his request, Sokov felt relieved: "I will go to Yasnaya Polyana early tomorrow morning."

"By the way." Just as Sokov turned around and prepared to leave, Potapov added, "I have ordered someone to prepare a new military rank for you, which will be sent to you later."

The next morning, Sokov, two drivers and four guards boarded two jeeps and headed for the town of Yasnaya Polyana.

After entering the town, there were basically no residents to be seen. I didn't know whether they had been evacuated or were busy in the factory.

Sokov saw a round booth next to the intersection ahead, with a traffic policeman sitting inside. He quickly told the driver: "Comrade driver, drive the car to the booth."

The driver nodded and stopped the car next to the booth.

Sokov opened the door and got out of the car. He walked to the door of the booth and asked the traffic policeman sitting inside: "Hello, traffic policeman! I want to ask where I can find the person in charge in the town?"

The traffic policeman quickly stood up and saluted Sokov, saying respectfully, "Hello, Comrade Major! If you are looking for the person in charge of the town, I can only tell you with regret that they have withdrawn to Tula two days ago. There is no one else in the town except a few traffic policemen including me."

Sokov raised his eyebrows and asked, "What about Tolstoy's manor? Can we find anyone there?"

The traffic policeman took off his wide-brimmed hat, scratched the back of his head, and said awkwardly, "I'm afraid it's not possible. A few days ago, a convoy entered the manor, reportedly to move the cultural relics inside. According to the time calculation, they should have moved most of the things inside, and there should be no one in the manor."

After learning the information he wanted to know, Sokov thanked the traffic police, returned to his car, told the driver to drive immediately to Tolstoy's estate.

As the driver started the car, he said, "Comrade Major, the traffic police have already said that there is no one in the manor, so why are we going there?"

Sokov replied coldly: "Whether there is anyone there or not, let's go and take a look first."

Sokov was now completely pessimistic about this trip to Tolstoy's estate. All the residents of Yasnaya Polyana had been evacuated, and only a few traffic police were left in the town. It was unclear whether there were people in Tolstoy's estate, but at least it showed that the relocation of the graves could not be carried out at all.

Two jeeps arrived at the gate of the manor and saw that the gate was closed.

The driver turned to Sokov and said, "Comrade Major, there seems to be no one in the manor."

"Try honking the horn a few times."

The driver nodded and honked his horn.

After the horn honked a few times, a middle-aged man suddenly appeared behind the iron gate. He said through the iron gate: "I'm sorry, Tolstoy's manor is now closed indefinitely and is not open to visitors for the time being."

Sokov opened the car door, walked straight to the iron gate, and said to the middle-aged man inside: "I am Major Sokov, the adjutant of the 1st Guards Army. I am here on orders. Please open the door. We are here to carry out a mission."

After the middle-aged man figured out Sokov's identity, he quickly replied, "Comrade Major, I am a staff member of the manor. Please wait a moment and I will open the door for you right away."

After the staff used the key to open the iron lock on the door, they pushed the door open to allow the vehicle of Sokov and others to enter.

Considering that he would need the cooperation of the staff after entering the manor, Sokov stopped the jeep and opened the back door when it passed by the staff, and shouted to the staff, "Get in the car!"

After the staff got on the jeep, it drove along a birch-lined avenue. On the left side of the avenue was a quiet and peaceful lake. The water was dark green, and flocks of wild ducks could be seen swimming in the lake. Sokov thought that when the Germans came here, these wild ducks would probably become their food.

In a small open space, several towering oak trees shade Tolstoy's former residence - a two-story building with white walls and blue roof.

The jeep stopped in front of the building, and the staff got out first and used the key to open and close the door. After Sokov and the other staff opened the door, he followed the driver and the guards into the lobby.

The hallway was surrounded by bookcases, but it was empty inside. The books in the bookcases must have been moved away.

The staff pointed to the hooks on the wall and said to Sokov, "Comrade Major, Tolstoy's briefcase used to hang on the wall. He used this briefcase to take letters and newspapers. In the glass cabinet next to it, there were several hunting rifles. They were the hunting rifles Tolstoy used for hunting. They were moved away with the books a few days ago."

"Comrade, I heard that there is a room here where Tolstoy's manuscripts and letters are kept. Is that true?" the driver asked.

"You are right. Tolstoy's manuscripts and letters are indeed kept in the 'dome' on the first floor. You know, he completed immortal works such as "War and Peace", "Anna Karenina" and "Resurrection" here. But you certainly can't see these precious relics today. They were moved away two days ago."

Everyone followed the staff to the second floor, where there was a spacious and bright hall.

The staff introduced to the crowd, saying: "This hall was once the activity center for Moscow's literary and artistic circles. Tolstoy received Turgenev, Chekhov, Gorky and others here. There were originally two portraits of Tolstoy on the wall of the hall, painted by the famous painters Kramosko and Repin. Next to it was a portrait of Tolstoy's wife, and on the opposite wall were portraits of several ancestors. But these portraits were also moved away by professionals a few days ago.

The library on the second floor contains 14 volumes of books in 2.3 languages, some of which are signed gifts from Turgenev, Romain Rolland, Gorky and others. These books have now been transferred to the Lenin Library in Moscow and will be sent back after the war.

Sokov saw an antique-looking piano in a corner of the hall, so he asked casually, "Is this the piano Tolstoy used?"

"Yes, Comrade Major, you guessed it right. This is indeed the piano left by Tolstoy." The staff member smiled and introduced it to Sokov: "Tolstoy loved music. In his spare time from writing, he wanted to sit at the piano and play a few songs."

Sokov recalled that he had seen in a movie that after Guderian occupied Tolstoy's estate, he ordered people to throw out the bed in Tolstoy's bedroom and the piano, leaving them exposed to the sun and rain. As a result, the pianos used for display in later generations were all replicas. Thinking of this, he asked tentatively: "Why didn't you move the piano?"

"The truck that brought the cultural relics couldn't fit any more, so they left the piano here." The staff member said this, and seeing Sokov frown slightly, he quickly added: "Comrade Major, don't worry, someone will come to take the piano away next week at the latest."

Sokov showed a bitter smile on his face, thinking that Guderian's troops would probably arrive at Tolstoy Manor in the next two days. When you come next week, this place will have been occupied by the Germans. By then, this piano will be thrown out into the open air by Guderian like garbage, just like the original history.

"I wonder in which room Tolstoy wrote his works?" the driver interrupted again.

"There is a study room on the ground floor that was converted from a storage room. It is the quietest place in the house, and Tolstoy liked to stay here to write." The staff introduced: "On the wall are the sickles and ropes he used to work with the peasants, as well as the large and loose peasant-style smock he often wore. Seeing these things, you will feel that this is the home of a Russian landowner who has never seen the world."

The staff member's words caused a burst of laughter.

Sokov's purpose of coming here was to check whether Tolstoy's tomb could be moved, but now it seems that this hope will be dashed. But before leaving here, he wanted to see Tolstoy's tomb with his own eyes, so he asked the staff: "Can you take us to see Tolstoy's tomb?"

"Of course, of course." The staff member said politely: "Please follow me!"

Led by the staff, the group soon arrived at Tolstoy's grave. The grave was built under a big tree beside a path leading deep into the forest. There were no inscriptions or sculptures that are common in Russian cemeteries, only a small mound in the shape of a coffin and a wooden cross. The densely covered grass on the grave had turned yellow.

Sokov later visited Tolstoy's estate and did not see any cross in front of the tomb. It must be that after the war, the Soviets collected Tolstoy's remains and reburied them without erecting a cross.

After seeing almost everything that needed to be seen, Sokov turned to the staff and asked, "I want to ask, if Tolstoy's tomb is to be moved, who can make the decision?"

When the staff heard what Sokov said, their eyes widened in surprise: "What, Comrade Major, what did you say? Tolstoy's grave is to be moved, why is that?"

"The Germans are only a few dozen kilometers away from here and may break in later." Sokov explained to the staff: "Once Tolstoy's estate is occupied by the Germans, I am worried that they may destroy Tolstoy's tomb, so we have to consider moving the cemetery."

Sokov's words drove the staff crazy: "Comrade Major, Tolstoy is a world-famous writer. Even if the Germans occupied this place, they couldn't destroy his tomb, right? Therefore, relocating the tomb is simply impossible."

From the staff's words, Sokov understood why Potapov had such a surprised expression on his face after hearing what he said last night. It seemed that no one believed that after the Germans occupied the manor, they would risk the world's condemnation and dig out Tolstoy's body, and even almost grind it to dust.

Sokov did not waste his breath to explain to the staff, because he knew very well that even if he convinced the staff, he could not make the decision on such a major matter as moving Tolstoy's tomb. The only thing he could do was to report it to the higher-ups. By the time the higher-ups made a decision, it would be too late. He could not send troops to attack Tolstoy's estate and take away Tolstoy's remains, could he? Since Guderian had set up his headquarters here, the defense must be very strict. Sending troops to attack would be like hitting a rock with an egg.

After a tour of Tolstoy's manor, Sokov found that a lot of valuable things had been moved, but no one seemed to have considered relocating Tolstoy's grave. In this case, there was no need for him to make trouble, so he should just return to the military headquarters and continue to be Potapov's adjutant.

When everyone got on the car and left, the staff member said to Sokov: "Comrade Major, I will also leave here tomorrow. If you come again soon, I'm afraid you will not be able to enter the manor again."

Sokov extended his hand to the staff member, shook hands with him, and said in a friendly tone: "Don't worry, I'm afraid we won't come here until the war is over. I hope I can see you here again after the war is over."

"I think it's entirely possible." The staff member smiled and said, "When the war is over, when you come here again, I will be your guide and explain the history of Tolstoy's estate to you."

(End of this chapter)