Servant of the People in Kyiv

"Yes, Mr. Secretary." Chekhov said in a deep voice.

Kravchuk glanced around at everyone with a burning gaze, focusing on Haniyev, Nicholas, and the others. He said, "Comrades, the Central Committee has just issued an order requiring the Ministry of Internal Affairs to conduct a thorough investigation into the leaked information regarding the nuclear power plant accident. Such detailed reports must indicate that someone has infiltrated Chernobyl. Perhaps, in addition to spies and foreign media reporters, our citizens and even civil servants have been infiltrated. If the Ministry of Internal Affairs officials require your cooperation in the investigation, I hope that everyone present here is innocent."

The meeting hall was completely silent, no one dared to speak, and the cadres in the Chernobyl region all looked at the First Secretary Chekhov.

Although Chekovsky's administrative rank was three or four levels lower than Kravchuk's, he had more seniority than Kravchuk and was also a member of the Central Committee of Ukraine. So, upon hearing Kravchuk's questioning, he was furious and sneered, "As the top leader of the region, I will definitely be punished for such a serious incident. However, the leading cadres in our region are all fighters with bright futures and loyal to the Party and the Soviets. There will be no traitors to the revolution. Secretary Kravchuk, don't worry!"

With Chekhov speaking, the others, including Haniyev, also excitedly expressed their loyalty.

Seeing the indignation of the crowd, Kravchuk hurriedly put on a smile to appease them.

Although all signs indicate that Western media reporters did enter the Chernobyl area to take photos and learn details of the explosion, it is not necessarily the case that the leaks were made by regional officials. There are countless people among the hundreds of thousands of people who could do such things.

Moreover, there is no benefit for regional officials, such as young cadres such as Haniyev and Nicholas, to do this. After all, as a promising young cadre with connections in the capital and high regard for many leaders, Haniyev and others can enter the power center of the Ukrainian Soviet Republic and become governors or deputy ministers at around the age of 40.

If all goes well, it may even be possible to join the Ukrainian gang and become a member of the Kremlin's Politburo in his fifties or sixties.

How could these two young cadres, with such a bright future, risk being arrested by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and imprisoned in a labor camp or even exiled to Siberia to become running dogs of foreign forces?

As for the old cadres, they would not be so stupid. They have dedicated their entire lives to the Soviet Union. Not only do their families have good jobs, but they can also go to sanatoriums in various places to rest after retirement. They have reached the age where they should enjoy their lives. How could they betray the Soviet Union for a few small favors and give up everything they have accumulated through their lifelong struggle?

Kravchuk felt relieved at the thought and turned to discuss tomorrow's evacuation plan.

The president in the original historical line did not know that the guess he gave up was the real answer. Of course, it cannot be blamed on him. In April 1986, except for Haniyev, no one could have imagined that the Soviet Union would cease to exist five years later. Naturally, it was impossible to know what Haniyev would do.

Starting from the early morning of the 29th, the entire Chernobyl became busy.

All vehicles and personnel were mobilized, and then the first secretary of the region, Chekov, mobilized all the leaders of the region to subcontract areas and populations to lead the management and evacuate people in an orderly manner. Even Haniyev was responsible for the evacuation of 5,000 people in Apartment 10 and tens of thousands of people in Pripyat.

Since Haniyev had formulated the Pripyat evacuation plan in advance, and the Chernobyl evacuation plan was actually adjusted and expanded on the basis of Pripyat, Haniyev only needed to carry out flat management of his officials and militia according to the process.

That afternoon, Haniyev and other regional leaders took a group photo in front of the government building wearing anti-radiation suits and then left by car.

After nightfall, more than 300,000 Chernobyl residents were evacuated to Kiev and towns near Kiev.

The time soon arrived. It was the early morning of April 29th, and all personnel were ready to migrate south.

The great migration began in full swing.

As the capital of the Republic of Ukraine, Kiev is the leading large city in Eastern Europe. Relying on the Dnieper River, it has developed water resources, convenient transportation, and advanced materials. Together with the surrounding satellite cities, it can accommodate hundreds of thousands of people without any pressure at all.

However, the evacuation of such a large area and so many people was inevitably discovered and followed up by the Western media.

The Soviet Union, which had embarked on the path of reform, was obviously unable to prevent media reporters from the free world from interviewing the people, let alone taking photos and reporting. The only thing it could do was to ask government agencies to buy out their newspapers as soon as possible. This would only slow down the speed of information exposure and leakage, but would not block the news.

Haniyev personally drove his own car back to Kiev. At this time, most of the personnel he was responsible for were placed in the northernmost end of the west bank district, that is, the Minsk district, and the rest were placed in the Leningrad district and the Dnieper district on the east bank. This is the most remote area in the northern part of Kiev, but it is still much more prosperous than Chernobyl.

Although he returned to Kiev, Kravchuk ordered all officials in the Chernobyl region not to leave their respective resettlement areas for the time being, so Haniyev could not go home yet and could only stay in the Minsk district to allocate apartments and dormitories to citizens.

It was already 4:20 in the morning of the 30th when Haniyev finished all the work at hand. He had not slept all night and felt very tired.

However, all officials returning from Chernobyl are accommodated in the reception hotel on Cossack Street. Doctors from the hospital will then check whether they have been exposed to radiation and perform physical examinations. Those who are not in good health will be quickly sent to the hospital for treatment.

Haniyev prepared anti-radiation lead suits for everyone in advance, so basically no one's body had excessive nuclear radiation, which made everyone feel relieved.

Haniyev clearly felt that everyone's attitude towards him had become more friendly when he was having breakfast and attending the briefing meeting after the meal. Haniyev's heart moved, and he realized that it was obviously the physical examination this morning that reminded them that their good health was due to the anti-radiation clothing he prepared in advance, so he felt grateful in his heart.

Just as Haniyev was nodding to everyone one by one, Kravchuk suddenly walked into the conference room of the guesthouse with a sad face and sat down in the main seat of the conference room. Seeing the embarrassed expression of the main leader, everyone felt a sinking feeling in their hearts.

Haniyev frowned even more, thinking to himself: What happened again? Is there something fishy going on in the Kremlin?

Testimonials

Dear readers, thank you for your support.

I'm on a business trip today and can't go home until tomorrow afternoon. I'll make up for the chapter I owe later.

This book will be on the shelves next Monday, which is tomorrow. There will be paid chapters, so I still hope that everyone will support it.

Friends who like this book can read it with confidence. Although I cannot guarantee that you will be full after reading it, it is definitely inappropriate to be too lax.

Some of my friends are new friends, and some are old readers. In any case, you can only see this book by coming to DuDuShu. Without this platform, I am afraid I would never have written this book.

So, thanks to the DuDuReading website and editor Zi Yan for providing the platform.

Xia Chong will write a good book to repay you all. The following text should be the first climax. Please look forward to our Secretary Haniyev gradually becoming the most loyal and great public servant of the people.

The author says:

Chapter 052: Nuclear Peace Era (11)

Haniyev's worries were not unnecessary.

Kravchuk's first words at the meeting were: "Everyone, please wait for the officials from the Ministry of Internal Affairs. The Kremlin's main leadership has decided that everyone present here must undergo an investigation by the Ministry of Internal Affairs to ensure that there are no criminals who have betrayed the Soviet Union among you. I believe that everyone is innocent, so we should all accept the investigation and interview with confidence."

Kravchuk's speech caused a commotion before he finished speaking, because the cadres, who were tired after several days of resettling the people and had not slept all night, stood up in protest angrily.

Kravchuk allowed the people to vent their emotions, but his eyes quietly scanned the crowd.

After ten minutes, the noise gradually died down. After another five minutes, only a few sporadic voices remained. After another minute, the venue became completely silent.

Kravchuk was worthy of being the big man who could break up the Big Three. He took control of the meeting in just ten minutes.

He smiled warmly and said, "Don't be afraid, everyone. You have to trust me.

If you love the Soviet, please obey the decision of the Party Central Committee. If you refuse to obey, when the officials from the Ministry of Internal Affairs arrive, I will ask them to take over this building. Even if you are innocent, you may not end up well! "

Although Kravchuk's threat made people frown, it had a very good effect. Everyone stopped looking at him indignantly and instead looked at Chekhov in unison, hoping that the first secretary of the region would say something.

Chekhov slowly stood up and forced out his voice, word by word, "The Ministry of Internal Affairs' investigation of us is an order from General Secretary Gorbachev of the Kremlin. We must obey unconditionally. Now everyone, start recalling what you were doing before and after the accident. Think clearly. Don't wait until you face the plainclothes officers from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and get scared. If you say the wrong thing, I won't be able to save you then!"

After hearing Chekhov's words, everyone realized that accepting the investigation was a necessary choice, so everyone sat in their seats as Chekhov requested and quietly thought about where they were and what they did before the accident, and what they did after the accident, to sort out their thoughts so as not to say anything wrong.

Kravchuk, Chekhov and seven or eight other top leaders attending the meeting went out to greet the investigators from the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

Time passed by little by little. As the conference room clock chimed at 9 o'clock, a young man pushed the door open and said, "I'm here."

Everyone's spirits were lifted, and Haniyev looked towards the door with trepidation.

Kravchuk, Chekhov and his entourage came in accompanied by several officials in MVD uniforms.

After a brief welcoming meeting, Novikov, the First Minister of the Ukrainian Ministry of Internal Affairs, stood up, looked around, and slowly said, "Although everyone says welcome, I know very well that if we conduct investigations at the Ministry of Internal Affairs, we will offend people.

No one likes being investigated, so you are not welcome. However, the leadership has ordered us to come. I believe that you are all the most loyal cadres to the Soviet Union, so please follow our instructions and go through the process as quickly as possible so that everyone can have a good rest and we can also report back..."

Novikov was a middle-aged man in his fifties. He was not tall, had sparse hair, and wore glasses, but he spoke in a very friendly manner. After he finished speaking, everyone's emotions softened.

About half an hour later, the speech ended. Novikov ordered the dozen or so staff members of the Ministry of Internal Affairs who were waiting outside to come in. Then, with the cooperation of leaders such as Kravchuk and Chekhov, he assigned more than 20 regional leading cadres into groups of three and assigned them to investigators from the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

So, around 9:20, everyone stood together in groups of three or four and, led by an internal affairs officer, went to the offices around the conference room for investigation and interviews.

As the first person to discover and handle the accident, Haniyev was personally interviewed by three officials from the Ministry of Internal Affairs in a nearby office.

Although Haniyev was nervous, he had already prepared a response in his mind and had polished his words long ago. So even though the investigators from the Ministry of Internal Affairs first asked about the situation politely and then changed their attitude to threaten and blackmail Haniyev, Haniyev never changed his words.

Regarding Haniyev's early donation of anti-radiation lead suits to various fire brigades, Haniyev explained that he was responding to the call of the regional secretary and used the funds of the forest farm and the Forestry Committee to purchase the anti-radiation suits in order to show his positive attitude. The donation was just a gesture. He did not expect that they would really be used one day, and so timely.

The three Ministry of Internal Affairs investigators spent the longest time questioning Haniyev around 1 a.m. on April 26, trying to figure out why Haniyev was able to discover the explosion in the first place, call the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, handle matters calmly and thoughtfully, arrange evacuation, and arrange for firefighters to wear radiation-proof clothing, as if he had known that the nuclear power plant explosion would occur.

Haniyev's explanation was simple. He pulled out his previously written emergency plan and a Reuters report on the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant leak in the United States, saying, "My emergency plan was prepared based on the report. I just wanted to express my stance when I first took office in Pripyat. This is also necessary preparation for emergency situations in production safety. The emergency supplies and plans are all reasonable and logical."

Under the correct leadership of the Chernobyl Regional Party Committee, Pripyat attaches great importance to the safety of nuclear power plants. That's why I developed an emergency plan as a work remedy. This is my job. You can't accuse me of betraying the Soviet Union or sabotaging things just because I just arrived and actively carried out my duties and then used them..."

No matter how the attitudes and words of the three officials from the Ministry of Internal Affairs changed, Haniyev kept his impatient and angry tone and kept saying the same thing. It was not until an hour later when the Ministry of Internal Affairs let Haniyev leave and he was walking in the corridor that Haniyev breathed a sigh of relief, feeling that what he said was basically flawless.

The entire morning of April 30th was wasted on investigations and interviews.

At around 2 p.m., the interviews and investigations continued. Although Haniyev no longer needed to be interviewed, Natasha and Grigory, who were beside him, were called away for interviews and investigations.

It was soon night, and the Ministry of Internal Affairs left temporarily with the information from the Investigation Bureau.

Secretary Kravchuk once convened a meeting and informed everyone of some information, including the opinions of the Party Central Committee and the Kremlin on the nuclear accident, as well as a report on the progress of disaster relief work, which showed that the nuclear power plant had been cleaned up and the construction of a concrete protective cover had begun.

These were not state secrets, but rather things that the Soviet Union wanted to actively restore its image and was preparing to report extensively. That was why Kravchuk informed everyone without reservation.

Haniyev was not interested in many things, but after Kravchuk told him the last piece of news, Haniyev widened his eyes and almost cursed out loud.

Kravchuk told everyone that the latest news jointly announced by the military and Academician Legasov was that the disaster and nuclear radiation leakage were under control.

Therefore, regarding May Day, the Central Committee of the Ukrainian Communist Party decided that the large-scale celebratory parade in the capital Kyiv could be held as usual. In order to reassure the people, the First Secretary of the Republic, Shcherbitsky, even returned to Kyiv from Moscow and took his family to participate in the event, expressing the importance of the Central Committee of the Soviet Union to Kyiv and also telling the people:

The so-called nuclear power plant explosion was not serious. It was not as exaggerated as the Western media said and did not smear the Soviet Union. Instead, the impact of the disaster was resolved and eliminated, which shows the greatness of the Soviet Union.

Haniyev could not hear what Kravchuk said next. What he was most concerned about was whether the May Day celebrations would be held as usual.

Now that he got the answer that the meeting would continue, Haniyev did not feel the slightest bit of anger or surprise. He felt that given Gordi's fear of Secretary Sherbitsky and the conflict between the two factions, Gordi would definitely not be willing to use the nuclear power plant explosion accident to control Secretary Sherbitsky and bring down the Ukrainian gang.

Under such circumstances, Haniyev had already made the worst-case scenario plan in order to prevent his family, friends, including himself, from being harmed during the parade and celebration and being affected by radiation for life.

In other words, they gambled their own future to lift the lid and prevent the Soviet government from deceiving the people, in exchange for the May Day celebrations coming to an end.

As for what kind of outcome he would face as the mayor of Pripyat and a Soviet party member and soldier, Haniyev had already thought about it.

Dismissal, forced labor, or even disappearance are all possible, but the most likely outcome is dismissal plus forced labor.

However, this is the result based on the fact that Haniyev is just a small mayor. If Haniyev continues to receive attention and support from overseas media, with the blessing of a large amount of exposure, Haniyev will be able to become an unharmed "dragon slayer" and receive strong support from the free world, and Gorbachev will definitely not dare to touch him.

After all, Haniyev did not commit treason or crime. He just made the facts public to the Soviet people. Tens of millions of Ukrainians and millions of Belarusians will support Haniyev. Combined with the support of Western media and public opinion, Haniyev's gamble may result in five years of idle life under surveillance. However, five years later, when Kravchuk becomes president, he will definitely invite Haniyev, the great hero, to come out. After that, Haniyev feels that he can get familiar with the work in the first cabinet, run for president in 94 or later, and take charge of military affairs.

Haniyev was in a very complicated mood as he was deciding whether to take a big gamble.

Although Haniyev reported the nuclear power plant explosion through Reuters, and the EU, Britain and France, which now had a common enemy, were in good company, the news agencies of the three countries did report extensively on the incident, which put great pressure on the Soviet Union in international public opinion.

Even without foreign media reports and publicity, Haniyev decided to evacuate the citizens of Pripyat immediately and persuaded Chekhov to let many citizens of Chernobyl run back to Kiev and bring the news back to Kiev.

Therefore, the citizens of the capital have learned through various means and channels that an explosion has occurred at the nuclear power plant and that there is a radiation hazard to nearby areas.

However, at this time, no one knew how big the so-called radiation circle was. The government said it was a radius of 30 kilometers including the city of Chernobyl, while the city of Kiev, which was nearly 140 kilometers away, was obviously safe.

But what about the radioactive dust released into the air by the explosions and fires? It would fall into Kyiv, which is actually within the radiation range for the time being, as Academician Legasov had already mentioned two days ago when he recommended the entire city of Chernobyl be evacuated and relocated.

Therefore, Kyiv is not only at risk of being covered by radioactive dust, because the core radiation zone of the nuclear power plant includes the Dnieper River, and Kyiv is located downstream of the radiation zone, so the nuclear radiation from this explosion also contaminated the Dnieper River and the Kyiv Reservoir. The risk factor of Kyiv as a whole is essentially not low. At least in the year and a half after the concrete protective cover is repaired, the drinking water and food in Kyiv are not safe, and living here may also be very dangerous.

Kravchuk told everyone that what Ukraine's First Secretary Shcherbitsky meant was that the people of the Estonian Soviet Union should not lose their fighting spirit because of a small accident. At such an urgent moment, the May Day celebrations should be held to help the people regain their confidence in overcoming the disaster.

It can be said that this statement sounds very powerful, but in the eyes of Haniyev who knows the real situation, it is very disgusting.

Haniyev knew very well that Academician Legasov and Admiral Pikalov, who were now in Chernobyl in charge of disaster relief, as well as senior officials such as Kravchuk, should all know the real dangers of the nuclear power plant explosion and how alarming the current radiation levels were.

Haniyev, who is well versed in history, knows clearly that the area affected by the radioactive dust will cover millions of square kilometers. However, the radiation in some places is very small and disappears in a dozen days, while in some places it will not be weakened much for hundreds of years.

The most serious radiation zone is the area within a 100-kilometer radius centered on the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, especially the northern Belarus region, where a larger area is contaminated due to the influence of wind.

Under such circumstances, when the masses already knew about the disaster and it was bound to be concealed in the future, the Soviet leader Gorbachev still forced Sherbitsky to continue the May Day celebrations.

All discerning people knew at this time that if millions of people in Kiev came out to celebrate and parade on May 1st, it would mean that millions of people would be contaminated by radioactive dust and suffer from varying degrees of radiation, which might cause many people to develop cancer and other serious diseases, and thus suffer painful torture.

Obviously, as the leader of Ukraine and a Ukrainian, Sherbitsky would never make a decision that disregards the safety of people's lives, because he is not a madman or a fool. Such a decision will only harm him without even a little benefit. Therefore, Haniyev concluded that Gordi was using this accident to deal with Sherbitsky.

Chapter 053: The Nuclear Age (12)

At the moment the Chernobyl nuclear power plant accident occurred, Sherbitsky, as the top leader of Ukraine, was bound to be held responsible for the accident. In this situation, he lost even a trace of control and no longer had the ability and confidence to compete with Gorbachev.

It can even be said that he has become an opponent that Gordi can control at will, which is why Sherbitsky cannot refuse Gordi's orders.

The holding of the May Day celebrations as scheduled will be a symbolic event that marks the complete overthrow of Sherbitsky and the Ukrainian gang, as Ukrainians will no longer support them.

The political struggle between the reformists led by Gorbachev and the conservatives led by Shcherbitsky was brutal, but it cost countless Ukrainians their lives.

Every person who is exposed to severe nuclear radiation will be tortured by it for the rest of their lives, and will gradually develop various diseases, cancer, terminal illnesses, and even die in the future.

Haniyev carefully observed the expressions of Kravchuk and Chekhov when they talked about the May Day celebrations, and guessed that the two also knew that Sherbitsky's decision must have been due to pressure or even orders from Moscow.

In order to completely suppress the Ukrainian Gang and Sherbitsky, Gorbachev forced Kiev to continue the demonstrations in order to wait until the radiation outbreak, when the foundation of the Ukrainian Gang would be overthrown. He could then use this incident as an opportunity to control the entire government and fully implement the reforms he wanted to implement.

When Haniyev thought of this, he felt very disgusted with Gordi. He knew that he had to follow his heart and stop this self-righteous guy.

Haniyev initially decided to become an official in order to make advance preparations after the accident and better protect the lives of the people. After the accident, he was appreciated by the leaders and promoted quickly.

Now that this goal has been achieved, Haniyev can feel from Kravchuk and Chekhov's attitude towards him that he has reduced casualties and harm, as well as adverse effects and public opinions, by his quick action in Pripyat, and thus gained the appreciation and attention of these two leaders.

As long as he waits, Haniyev knows that there will be at least one minister waiting for him in the future.

But now that he knew that the parade and celebration would continue tomorrow, Haniyev was furious and decided to do something big.

Haniyev had already made his decision, so after the meeting, he looked at his watch and then nervously thought about his plan.

It is 4:10 PM on April 30th, and there are only three hours left until dark.

Since the Ministry of Internal Affairs was investigating officials in the entire Chernobyl area, Haniyev, who was staying in the guest hotel, was worried that he had been monitored by officials from the Ministry of Internal Affairs. If he went out, he would probably be followed, so Haniyev had no choice but to let Natasha deliver the message.

Natasha is Haniyev's girlfriend and admirer. At this time, Natasha, who is infatuated with love, obeys all instructions of Haniyev. At night, Haniyev teaches her to play musical instruments and sing, and she suppresses her shyness and studies devoutly. Now Haniyev asks her to go out and deliver the message, and Natasha also believes that this is a sacred and great cause, so she excitedly agrees.