red moscow

Chapter 3164

The next morning, while still asleep, Sokov heard a faint ringing of the telephone. Thinking that Asya or Gulia would answer, he ignored it, turned over, and went back to sleep.

Not long after, he felt someone shaking his shoulder and heard Asya's voice: "Misha, Misha, wake up! It's your phone. It's Marshal Zhukov calling."

Upon learning that it was Zhukov calling, Sokov immediately sat up abruptly: "It's Marshal Zhukov calling?"

Standing by the bed, Asya nodded vigorously and said with certainty, "Yes, it was Marshal Zhukov who called."

Sokov jumped out of bed, not even bothering to put on his shoes, and ran straight out of the bedroom to answer the phone in the living room.

"Hello, Comrade Marshal!" Sokov picked up the microphone, held it to his ear, and said respectfully, "This is Sokov. What are your instructions?"

"I heard from Lukin that you want to come out and start work," Zhukov asked calmly. "Is this your true intention?"

“That’s right, Comrade Marshal.” Sokov had been dealing with Zhukov for quite some time and knew that the other man wouldn’t talk nonsense. Since he asked this question, he must have a reason. So he answered truthfully: “My injuries have basically healed. I’ve been staying at home all day with nothing to do, so I want to go out and do some work.”

"Is your body capable of handling the intensity of your current work?"

“No problem,” Sokov replied confidently. “No matter how intense the workload is now, can it compare to the workload during the war? Back then, I could continue working even with injuries, so I can certainly handle it easily now.”

After Sokov finished speaking, there was no sound from the receiver. Zhukov seemed to be processing what Sokov had said and considering whether he should let him come out and start working.

After a while, Zhukov's voice came through the receiver again: "Alright, Misha, since you feel that your body is capable of handling the current work, come to my office at ten o'clock this morning and I will arrange work for you."

"That's wonderful, that's wonderful!" Sokov was overjoyed to hear that Zhukov had agreed to stop his recuperation and return to his post. He replied repeatedly, "Don't worry, Comrade Marshal, I will arrive on time."

Just as Sokov thought the other person was going to hang up, he heard them suddenly say, "Misha, do you know about Yasha's situation?"

“Yes, Comrade Marshal.” Sokov, hearing Zhukov ask about Yakov, hurriedly explained: “Yasha came to visit me yesterday, saying that he and his colleagues were accommodated in the city's industrial bureau's guesthouse by the reception staff…”

Before he could finish speaking, Zhukov interrupted him: "I know the whole story, you don't need to repeat it. I want to ask you, do you know the results of the police headquarters' search of the city's industrial bureau guesthouse?"

"I don't know, Comrade Marshal," Sokov replied curtly. "I'm just a retired deputy commander; the head of the police headquarters wouldn't report such an important matter to me."

"Since you don't know, then I'll tell you the result," Zhukov said. "After the police search, they found listening devices under the beds, in the light fixtures, and in the telephone stands in the guesthouse rooms. This shows that those unidentified people placed them in this guesthouse to eavesdrop on Yasha and the others' conversations and obtain the confidential information they wanted."

Who planted the listening devices?

"It's not clear at the moment," Zhukov said. "It could be German or Romanian spies remaining in Odessa, or even British or American intelligence personnel."

Zhukov's words made Sokov realize that the current situation in Odessa was more complicated than he had imagined, and he cautiously asked, "Comrade Marshal, how do you intend to handle this matter?"

"If it involves espionage, then it's beyond our jurisdiction and must be handed over to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, since they excel at detecting spies. Oh, and there's one more thing I almost forgot to tell you: your good friend General Lunev will arrive in Odessa this afternoon. Now that you're ready to get to work, I'll leave the arrangements for receiving him to you."

After ending his call with Zhukov and putting down the receiver, Sokov said to Gulia, who was standing beside him, "Gulia, the Marshal has agreed to let me return to my post and get back to work as soon as possible." "When do you plan to go to the military district office?"

"The Marshal asked me to go to his office at ten o'clock," Sokov said. "Therefore, I must arrive at the military district's office building before that time."

“Understood, Comrade General!” Gulia nodded and replied, “I will arrange transportation for you.”

After finishing breakfast, Sokov sat in his study and continued reading until Gulia came in from outside: "Comrade General, it's already nine o'clock. If you don't object, we can set off."

"Okay, I'll pack up and leave."

A few minutes later, Sokov, dressed in military uniform, walked out of the villa accompanied by Gulia and got into the black car parked at the door.

Gulia helped Sokov close the car door, then got into the passenger seat and, glancing at the driver, instructed, "Drive to the military district office building!"

The young driver nodded, started the vehicle, and drove along the road toward the gate of the compound.

Several temporary checkpoints were set up along the way to the military region's office building. However, the officers and soldiers on duty, upon seeing the license plate on the black sedan, hurriedly raised the barrier across the road to allow the vehicle to pass, and stood on the side of the road to salute.

Sokov asked Gulia, who was sitting in the passenger seat, curiously, "Gulia, didn't the war end a long time ago? Why are there still so many checkpoints along the way?"

Gulia turned halfway around and explained to Sokov: "Comrade General, although the war has long ended, Odessa has become a contested area due to its special geographical location. The situation in the city is very complicated, so we have to set up temporary checkpoints to maintain the security and stability of certain important areas."

Gulia's words reminded Sokov of the suggestion he had made to Zhukov some time ago, and he wondered how it had gone.

I initially considered asking Gulia, but then I thought that Gulia was my personal bodyguard and spent most of her time in the villa. If she knew the situation outside, she would have already told me. It seems that to understand the specifics, it's better to wait until I meet with Zhukov and ask him in person.

The vehicle stopped at the entrance of the military district office. Gulia went to the back seat, opened the car door for Sokov, and helped him out of the car.

As the two men walked into the office building, they were stopped by a lieutenant on duty: "Excuse me, General, please show me your identification!"

Upon hearing the lieutenant's words, Gulia immediately became furious: "Lieutenant, do you even know who this general in front of you is?"

"Excuse me, Second Lieutenant." To everyone's surprise, the Lieutenant replied calmly, "I don't know him. According to regulations, anyone not working in this building must show their identification when entering or leaving."

Seeing that Gulia was about to argue with the other man, Sokov raised his hand to stop her: "Gulia, the lieutenant is just doing his duty. Don't make things difficult for him." As he spoke, he took out his identification from his pocket and handed it to the lieutenant, "This is my identification."

After checking Sokov's identification, the lieutenant's face flushed crimson. He stood at attention, raised his hand in salute, and said somewhat flusteredly, "I'm sorry, Deputy Commander, I didn't know it was you. Please forgive my rudeness."

Sokov took his identification back from him and asked expressionlessly, "Lieutenant, may we go in now?"

"Of course, of course." The lieutenant quickly stepped aside to make way for Sokov and his companion, saying respectfully, "Please come in!"