red moscow

Chapter 3131

As Victoria and the rescue team anxiously searched for Sokov beneath the Hoflin Hospital, they were unaware that Sokov was in a military hospital in Odessa in another timeline. He lay in bed, his face still pale from recovering from a long illness, but he could clearly converse with his wife, Asiya, who sat beside him. He turned his head slightly, his eyes filled with confusion and urgency, carefully asking Asiya about everything that had happened after he was wounded and fell unconscious.

“Asia, tell me,” Sokov asked weakly, looking at Asya. “I remember being attacked and wounded on my way to Vienna. Logically, if I were to be sent back to my country for treatment, I should have been sent to Moscow. But why… why did I end up in a military hospital in Odessa? What happened in between?”

Asya sighed softly, took his hand, and spoke gently, her voice tinged with a sob: "Misha, you don't know this. After you were wounded, General Malinin immediately arranged a special plane to send you back to Moscow. You lay in the Central Military Hospital there for two whole months—although you were long past the point of being in danger, you remained unconscious." She paused, as if the days of waiting still haunted her. "Just when everyone was almost about to give up hope, Marshal Zhukov was appointed commander of the Odessa Military District. Before leaving, he specifically requested to his superiors that you be transferred to Odessa for continued treatment. After receiving permission, he even helped me with the transfer procedures, making me a doctor at the Odessa Military Hospital."

Upon hearing this, Sokov couldn't help but smile wryly and shake his head: "What can I, an unconscious wounded soldier, do by coming to Odessa with him? Wouldn't I just be causing him trouble?"

“No, Misha, you don’t understand.” Asya leaned forward, lowering her voice. “Marshal Zhukov actually already had a letter of appointment for you prepared. He told me this himself—he said that if you regain consciousness, he would immediately appoint you as the deputy commander of the Odessa Military District.” She paused, her expression becoming somewhat complicated. “But if… if you don’t regain consciousness, then this letter of appointment will remain unused until it eventually expires.”

"Until it expires?" Sokov frowned, keenly catching the detail in her words. "That appointment letter... how long is it valid?"

“One year,” Asia answered without hesitation. “That means if you haven’t woken up by this time next year, this appointment issued by your superiors will automatically be void.”

“Oh, I see.” Sokov nodded thoughtfully, his gaze gradually becoming distant. After a moment, he spoke again, his question probing deeper: “But, Asya, I remember that before I went to Europe, Marshal Zhukov was just appointed Deputy Minister of Defense and Commander-in-Chief of the Army, wasn’t he? How come he was transferred to serve as Commander of the Odessa Military District in the blink of an eye? What… exactly happened in between?”

In truth, Sokov already had a general understanding of the real reasons for Zhukov's demotion from the historical materials he knew. However, he still chose to ask Asya this question, hoping to verify through her answer whether his presence had subtly altered the course of history.

Asya didn't answer immediately. She first stood up, walked slowly to the door, and carefully pushed it open a crack, cautiously peering outside. After confirming that no one was in the hallway, she gently closed the door, even pressing the lock button as she did so. Returning to the bedside, she didn't sit down immediately, but instead bent down to carefully examine under the bed, the bedside table, and behind the curtains, as if checking for any eavesdropping devices.

Only after confirming that there were no suspicious devices in the ward did Asya sit back down in her chair, her voice lower and her tone more serious: "It was Abakumov... He and his faction falsely accused Marshal Zhukov of plotting a military coup." As she spoke, she observed Sokov's reaction. "Fortunately, Marshals Rokossovsky, Konev, and Vasilevsky stood up to uphold justice and firmly refuted the claims that Zhukov had conspired. Stalin ultimately did not sign the arrest warrant."

She took a breath and continued to explain, "When Abakumov saw that this tactic hadn't worked, he reported Marshal Zhukov, saying that after leading his troops to occupy Berlin, he had privately looted a large amount of German property. Stalin sent men to raid his home... and indeed they found a lot of German artwork and valuables. Faced with such evidence, Marshal Zhukov had no choice but to make a public apology."

Asya's voice was filled with suppressed anger and helplessness: "Afterwards, Comrade Stalin publicly criticized Marshal Zhukov for being 'unmodest, overly arrogant, and attributing the decisive role of all major battles won during the war to himself.'" She paused slightly, then added, "He was also accused of 'harboring hatred, preparing to recruit disillusioned and dismissed commanders to engage in activities against the government and the Supreme Command.' Thus, Marshal Zhukov was removed from all three of his key positions… He was demoted and ultimately relegated to the position of commander of the Odessa Military District." After discovering that Zhukov's experience didn't deviate much from his understanding of history, Sokov felt much more at ease. Zhukov's position as commander of the Odessa Military District was merely a transitional one; he would soon be transferred to the Ural Military District. He wondered if Zhukov would allow him to follow him then.

Seeing Sokov lost in thought, Asya asked curiously, "Misha, what are you thinking about?"

"Asia, have you told Marshal Zhukov that I have awakened?"

“While the doctor was examining you, I went out to make a phone call to headquarters,” Asya said with a regretful expression. “But the person who answered the phone told me that Marshal Zhukov was organizing a meeting and that I should call back in two hours.” As she said this, she raised her hand to check the time. “I have twenty minutes left before I can call the Marshal again.”

"Marshal Zhukov knows I've woken up. Will he come back to visit me?" Sokov asked somewhat uncertainly.

“He will definitely come to visit you,” Asia said with certainty. “During the time you were in a coma, he would come to visit you every two or three days. Sometimes he would sit by your bedside and talk to you, hoping to help you wake up in this way.”

Sokov nodded slightly and continued, "Besides Marshal Zhukov, do I know anyone else in the Odessa Military District?"

He had only asked casually, but to his surprise, Asiya nodded and said, "Yes, besides Marshal Zhukov, there is another old acquaintance of yours."

"An old acquaintance of mine?!" Sokov was taken aback, then tentatively asked, "Who is it? Could it be Yakov?"

“No, no, no, it’s not Yasha.” Asya shook her head vigorously and replied, “It’s Lieutenant General Lukin, who is now the First Deputy Commander of the Odessa Military District.”

"Oh, Lukin has also been transferred to the Odessa Military District?" Sokov's face lit up with joy, and he said with emotion, "I never thought I would be able to work with him again."

(End of this chapter)