red moscow

Chapter 2947

“District 13?” Victoria’s face was full of confusion. “What District 13? I’ve never heard of it.”

Seeing that Victoria was unaware of this, Sokov felt somewhat disappointed, but he still asked reluctantly, "Vika, do you really not know what District 13 means?"

Victoria shook her head and asked in return, "Misha, who told you about District 13?" After a pause, she added, "Don't you know that in Europe and America, 13 is an unlucky number? Even some high-rise buildings don't have 13 floors."

Sokov paused for a moment, then explained to Victoria, "Some time ago, I rescued two scouts. One of them casually told me that his mission was related to District 13."

After figuring out how Sokov had heard about District 13, Victoria shook her head again and said truthfully, "Misha, I'm sorry, I've never heard of anything about District 13. Neither in this day and age nor in the future we've come from."

Seeing that Victoria really didn't know what District 13 was all about, Sokov stopped pressing the issue and started chatting with her casually.

"By the way, Misha, there's something I want to ask you."

"I remember you're still not married. Do you have a girlfriend?"

Victoria's question caught Sokov off guard, leaving him momentarily at a loss for words.

After a long pause, Sokov murmured, "Vika, if you're talking about the future, I do have a girlfriend I'm very close to, who lives upstairs from me. But in this day and age, I'm still a bachelor, without a wife or a girlfriend."

"Interested in finding one?"

Hearing Victoria say this, Sokov looked at her with some surprise, wondering if she was going to volunteer herself.

But her next words made Sokov realize he had been deluding himself. "It's like this, Misha," Victoria said, "after you left yesterday, the nurse who took care of me asked a lot of questions about you. I think she likes you. So, would you like to date her?"

The nurse who pushed Victoria's wheelchair out was someone Sokov had seen twice, but he had never really looked at her closely, so much so that he still didn't know what she looked like. Faced with Victoria's matchmaking, he replied without hesitation, "Vika, what I'm thinking about right now is how to return to my own time as soon as possible; I won't consider anything else for the time being."

"I see." After hearing Sokov's words, Victoria said with a face full of regret, "That's a real pity. I think the nurse will be very sad to hear this news."

Before Sokov could speak, Victoria suddenly said warily, "Misha, someone's coming!"

Sokov instinctively looked behind him and saw Lukin, sitting in a wheelchair, being pushed out of the building by a male soldier.

"This is Lieutenant General Lukin, whom I rescued." After explaining Lukin's identity to Victoria, Sokov stood up to greet him: "Comrade General, what brings you out here? How is your leg injury?"

“Under the care of the medical staff, her condition has improved significantly.” After saying this, Lukin turned to look at Victoria not far away and asked in a low voice, “Lieutenant Colonel Sokov, who is that girl? Is she your friend?”

“Yes, she is my friend.” Sokov quickly explained, “She is a police officer who was injured by a grenade thrown by saboteurs while on duty on the street some time ago, and then she was sent to this military hospital to recover.”

Lu Jin turned to the soldier pushing the wheelchair and said, "Comrade soldier, could you please push me next to that woman?"

Upon seeing Lukin's arrival, Victoria, who was in a wheelchair, tried to stand up to salute him, but Lukin stopped her: "Comrade, you are injured, so there's no need for you to stand up. It's fine if we just sit here and chat."

Although Victoria did not stand up, she still raised her hand and saluted Lukin from her wheelchair because of his rank: "Hello, General! I am Corporal Victoria!"

Lukin returned the salute, then extended his hand to Victoria: "Hello, Comrade Victoria, I heard you're a friend of Lieutenant Colonel Sokov?"

Victoria glanced quickly at Sokov, then nodded in acknowledgment: "Yes, Comrade General, I am indeed Misha's friend."

Although it was their first meeting, Victoria was a talkative person, and she could find common ground with someone she had just met in a very short time. In just a few minutes, she and Lukin were chatting and laughing like old friends.

Sokov and the soldier pushing the wheelchair couldn't get a word in edgewise, so they could only stand quietly to the side and act as listeners.

As the two were chatting happily, a captain carrying a briefcase came out of the building. He stood at the door, looked around, and then strode quickly toward where Lukin was.

"Hello, Comrade General!" The captain approached Lu Jin, saluted, and said respectfully, "I am an officer of the National Defense Commission. I am here on orders from my superiors to deliver an invitation to you!" He then took a white envelope from his briefcase and handed it to Lu Jin.

Upon seeing the white envelope in Lukin's hand, Sokov couldn't help but smile slightly. In this country, envelopes containing invitations or monetary gifts are always white. In Hong Kong, such an envelope would likely contain a letter of termination of employment, but here, a white envelope contains something important.

Lukin opened the envelope and took out a blue invitation to the October Day parade on the 7th. The invitation also included his seat number and some instructions for entering and exiting the parade.

Seeing that Lukin had received an invitation to the Red Square parade, Sokov couldn't help but feel a pang of jealousy. Although he was also in Moscow, he wasn't eligible to participate in this world-renowned military parade, which was undoubtedly a regret.

After Lukin finished reading the invitation and put it away, the captain turned to Sokov and politely asked, "Lieutenant Colonel, are you Lieutenant Colonel Sokov from the 16th Army?"

“That’s right, I am Lieutenant Colonel Sokov.”

The captain pulled another white envelope from his briefcase and handed it to Sokov: "This is your invitation." Sokov, who had thought he had missed the parade, was stunned to see the white envelope before him. He hadn't expected to be eligible to attend the parade. So caught off guard, Sokov simply stared at the white envelope without reaching out to take it.

Seeing that Sokov was slow to accept the invitation, the captain was not annoyed. Instead, he shoved the white envelope into Sokov's hand and said, "Comrade General, Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, I have delivered the invitation. Please assemble at the designated place on the date stated on the invitation."

"Don't worry, Captain," Lukin nodded and said, "we will be there on time."

After the captain turned and left, Sokov opened the white envelope and took out the invitation. Coincidentally, he was seated right next to Lukin.

After reading the contents of the invitation, Lukin said with a smile, "Misha, I'll trouble you to push my wheelchair in then."

Sokov quickly replied, "Comrade General, it is my honor to serve you."

After exchanging a few more words with Sokov and Victoria, Lukin had a soldier push him back to the hospital building.

As soon as Lukin's figure disappeared into the entrance of the hospital building, Victoria excitedly patted Sokov on the shoulder and said, "Misha, I never expected that you would have the opportunity to participate in the October Day parade. I am so envious of you."

Sokov handed the white envelope to Victoria, teasing her, "How about I give you the invitation and you go in my place?"

“Misha, don’t joke around.” Victoria said with a smile, “I would like to go, after all, it’s a military parade that will go down in history. After the participating officers and soldiers pass through Red Square, they will board the vehicles parked on the banks of the Moscow River and head to the front lines. Based on my experience, the invitations sent out this time are all on file with the relevant departments, and everyone will be strictly checked when they enter with an invitation. Even if I have your invitation, I won’t be able to get in at all.”

Sokov retrieved the white envelope and carefully placed it into his satchel to avoid losing it, which would prevent him from entering the venue.

“Misha, did you participate in the Red Square parade in your previous life?” Victoria, perhaps worried that Sokov would misunderstand her, quickly added, “Apart from the time when the Germans were at the gates, participating in any subsequent parade counts.”

"I participated once."

“You only participated once?” Victoria was a little disappointed, but she still asked curiously, “Was it the Victory Parade in June 1945?”

But Sokov shook his head and said, "I really didn't participate in that parade you mentioned."

"Why?" Victoria asked, puzzled. "Didn't the Germans surrender at that time, and all the senior commanders who were fighting abroad returned to Moscow? As a senior general who has made many military achievements, how could you not participate in that important military parade?"

"Vika, have you forgotten about Operation Storm in August?"

"Operation August Storm?" Victoria asked in surprise. "The operation that launched the attack on the Kwantung Army?"

“That’s right,” Sokov explained. “At the time, in order to quietly transfer nearly a million troops to the Far East, many senior commanders involved in the war went into hiding, concealing their true identities to avoid being discovered by the Kwantung Army’s intelligence agencies. Yakov and I were taken to a sanatorium outside Moscow, thus missing the Victory Parade.”

“That’s such a pity,” Victoria said regretfully. “As a general with such a distinguished record, it is truly a lifelong regret that you were unable to attend such a grand celebration.”

“Yes, it’s quite a pity.” Sokov nodded and said, “The last time I traveled through time, it was already early December, long after the October Day parade. After the war ended, I didn’t have the chance to participate in that important victory parade and see the soldiers throw countless German flags on the open ground in front of Lenin’s Mausoleum. But this time I have the opportunity to participate in the October Day parade, which can be considered a small way of making up for the regrets of my previous life.”

Upon hearing this, Victoria's expression turned serious: "Misha, if God really does allow you to participate in the October Day parade a few days later to make up for your regret, have you ever thought that after this war is won, you will also have the opportunity to participate in the Victory Day parade in Red Square?"

Sokov understood the implication in Victoria's words and couldn't help but gasp: "Vika, do you mean that we might not be able to return to our time until after the Victory Day parade in June 1945?"

Victoria nodded, giving Sokov an affirmative answer: "I was just worried about the possibility. But with you receiving the invitation to the October Day parade, the feeling has become even stronger. It seems that the three of us need to prepare ourselves for a long stay in this era."

Sokov pulled a silver cigarette case from his pocket, took out a cigarette, put it in his mouth but didn't light it. He said with a wry smile, "So, we should be prepared to stay in this era for three or four years."

“Misha, as things stand, Anton and I are both safe.” Victoria grasped Sokov’s hand, her face full of worry, and said, “My biggest worry right now is you. I’m afraid something might happen to you on the battlefield.”

Sokov grinned and said self-deprecatingly, "What could possibly happen to me? Didn't I tell you that my blood has a rapid self-healing function? As long as I don't get blown to pieces by artillery shells on the battlefield, I'm basically safe from death."

“That’s exactly what I’m worried about,” Victoria said. “You know, with your abilities and skills, once the Battle of Stalingrad breaks out next year, your superiors will definitely send you to that city to participate in the fighting. You know, soldiers who enter that city can only survive for 24 hours, and officers for only 72 hours. In such a brutal battlefield, do you still have the confidence to survive?”

“Vika, don’t worry, I will definitely survive.” After hearing Victoria’s words, Sokov quickly comforted her, “In my previous life, I participated in the Battle of Stalingrad, and the troops I led were responsible for defending Mamayev Kurgan. Although the enemy frequently launched attacks on the hill, their attempts to capture it were all thwarted by our tenacious resistance.”

“Last time was last time, and this time is this time.” Victoria said seriously, “You were lucky last time. Although you were injured twice, you survived both times. But have you considered what would happen if this battle were even more brutal and you were injured even more severely? Would you still be able to survive?”

Sokov fell silent. In his previous life, he had led his men to defend Mamayev Kurgan, beginning construction of fortifications two months in advance, yet his troops still suffered heavy losses. If he were temporarily transferred to Stalingrad this time, and his troops were tasked with defending the factory Lyudnikov had been holding, was he confident he could defend this vital factory as effectively as he had defended Mamayev Kurgan in his previous life?

“Misha, why aren’t you saying anything?” Victoria asked when she saw Sokov remain silent. “Do you think what I said makes sense? The Battle of Stalingrad in this life might be even more difficult than the one in the last. It’s questionable whether you can even survive until the end of the battle.”

(End of this chapter)