Servant of the People in Kyiv

As one of the "Seven Sisters" buildings during the Stalin era, representing European Gothic and American Modern, the Leningrad Hotel and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Welcome Hotel have the same style and are both great buildings in Moscow.

It’s just that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Guest House used to receive more foreign heads of state, but in recent years the Leningrad Hotel has taken on more of this task.

After waiting for more than ten minutes, Haniyev saw the director Kuzhugaitsky and the Arabic translator from the first department.

The Libyan staff member said in Russian: "Please follow me, our eldest son and the minister are waiting in the suite."

Kuzhugaitsky and Haniyev nodded, and the three of them followed the Libyan officials into the elevator and into the presidential suite of the Leningrad Hotel.

The Libyan guard pushed open the door, and the two deputy ministers smiled and said, "Director Kuzhugaitsky and Director Haniyev, please come in. Our eldest son and the two ministers are waiting for you."

When Haniyev walked into the living room, he saw two mustached officers standing in front of the sofa. There was only a young man of about seventeen or eighteen sitting on the sofa. Haniyev knew without hesitation that the young man was Gaddafi's eldest son, Mohammad Gaddafi.

Before returning to Moscow, Haniyev also specifically investigated the situation of the Gaddafi family and Libya with his colleagues in the African Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in charge of Libya. He learned that Gaddafi had an eldest daughter and seven sons, among whom the eldest daughter and eldest son were regarded as successors and were being trained.

Seeing Haniyev come in, Mohammad Gaddafi stood up and extended his hand first.

"Welcome, Mr. Haniyev."

After hearing the standard Russian spoken by the translator behind Gaddafi, Haniyev shook hands with him and said, "Nice to meet you, Mr. Mohammad Gaddafi."

Muhammad smiled and nodded, then shook hands with Kurugaitsky.

Normally, Libya's defense minister, finance minister, and military representative were all high-ranking officials and should have shaken hands with Haniyev and Kuzhugaitsky. However, Mohammed completely ignored them and pointed to the sofa beside him. "Please take a seat, gentlemen. My father has always wanted to meet with you, Mr. Haniyev, but he's been too busy at home to make a visit, so he had to ask me to come."

"Thank you, Commander-in-Chief Gaddafi, for your concern. We will meet again if we have the chance in the future, and I will definitely thank him in person then."

Haniyev thought for a moment before speaking, fearing that he might address the wrong person, because Gaddafi had resigned from all administrative posts a few years ago, retaining only the highest military post and the title of revolutionary mentor. Although he had many titles, he had to be called "plant" in official occasions, and calling him "colonel" was definitely wrong, so he could only be called "commander-in-chief."

Although Mohammed was young, he had seen the world since he was a child with his father, so he didn't show any immaturity. He exchanged a few pleasantries and asked, "My father is a close friend of President Sankara of Burkina Faso. He has helped Burkina Faso develop a lot in the past. He was very angry about the French teaming up with traitors like Compaoré to overthrow President Sankara's regime. Later, when he learned that it was you who helped President Sankara launch the revolution and thwarted their conspiracy, my father was very happy and admired your abilities..."

After hearing what the Libyan translator said, Haniyev's face changed, and Kuzhugaitsky raised his eyebrows.

Although everyone with a discerning eye knows that Haniyev was Sankara's senior adviser in launching the Great Revolution, neither Sankara nor Haniyev, as the parties involved, admits it. France and the Soviet Union also deny it. So everyone can only accept Sankara's statement, that is, he launched the Great Revolution himself, but because Compaore and others had decided on a military coup, in order to protect Haniyev and others, Sankara forced them to participate in his own Great Revolution.

This was a fig leaf, but now Libya's Gaddafi has torn the fig leaf in front of everyone. If Haniyev admits it, it will be a slap in everyone's face.

Haniyev waved his hands repeatedly and said, "Commander-in-Chief Gaddafi may have misunderstood. I did not help President Sankara. The great revolution in Burkina Faso was entirely a spontaneous decision made by Comrade Sankara based on his own judgment of the revolutionary situation..."

After listening to the translation, Muhammad looked at the two ministers beside him with some confusion.

The two ministers naturally understood the situation and knew what Haniyev meant, and spoke in a low voice in Arabic.

"My Lord, there are other Soviet officials here. Haniyev cannot admit that he helped Sankara, otherwise both France and the Soviet Union will blame him."

Mohammed suddenly understood, smiled apologetically, and said, "Well, Mr. Haniyev, my father asked me to bring you some gifts, please accept them."

Two Libyan soldiers brought in a small suitcase. Mohammed opened the suitcase with his own hands, and inside were glittering gold bars.

"This……"

Haniyev was a little surprised.

Mohammed smiled and said, "My father said you are a friend of Africans and a true socialist who selflessly helps Africans. That's why he really wants to be your friend. He knows you are a man of great ambition, so he gave you some gold, hoping it would be of some help to you."

Haniyev went to the box and took a look. These gold bars were about ten centimeters long and two centimeters wide. Each one weighed at least four hundred grams. At a rough glance, there were thirty or forty of them. According to the current gold price, these gold bars were worth one hundred thousand rubles, which was a huge sum of money.

Haniyev didn't dare to accept it and could only wave his hand to refuse. However, Mohammed disagreed. Haniyev turned his head to look at the director and asked, "What should I do? How about I accept it and hand it over to the organization?"

Kurugaitosky had been working for nearly fifty years, but he had never seen so much gold. Reluctantly looking away, he asked, "Of course you can turn it in, but it won't do you any good."

Haniyev suddenly had an idea and asked, "Would it be against the rules if I accepted it?"

"It's not completely against the rules, but if it gets out and someone sues you, it's going to be troublesome..."

Haniyev was slightly taken aback and asked cautiously, "I'm a cadre in the African Department. Our African Department happens to be the department that coordinates diplomatic relations with African countries. I think this money should be put into our department as funding..."

Kurugaitsky was surprised when he heard this, then delighted, and asked, "Is this appropriate?"

"Of course it's appropriate. If I weren't a cadre from the African Affairs Department, how would I have had the opportunity to go to Africa, meet Sankara, and become friends with him? And because of Gaddafi's good relationship with Sankara, I received the gold bars from Gaddafi. So this is entirely due to our Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the African Affairs Department. This money is definitely not for me personally, but for our Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the African Affairs Department..."

Haniyev knew very well that there was no benefit in taking the gold, but if he refused it he might offend Gaddafi and it would not quell the discussion. It would be better to change the gold that Gaddafi gave him personally into a gift to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the African Department. This way everyone could share the money. Not only would he win over the leaders of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, but he would also quell the discussion and use the money to repay Minister Shevardnadze for some favors.

After confirming that Haniyev wasn't joking, Kuzhugaitsky suppressed his excitement and said, "You're so aware, you're truly an outstanding cadre in our African Affairs Department. I think we can apply to the Ministry for this money. If the Minister doesn't object, we can temporarily accept it and use it for future work expenses for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the African Affairs Department."

Haniyev smiled in his heart, knowing that Kuzhugaitsky agreed, so he smiled and thanked Mohammad Gaddafi and accepted the box of gold bars.

Haniyev has never had any rich friends, and he doesn't know what kind of happiness it would be to have a rich friend, but he knows that Libya, with its oil, is much richer than Burkina Faso. As the dictator of Libya, Gaddafi is not short of money. The commander-in-chief is also a willful person. It is in line with his personality for him to give himself a box of gold if he is happy. What's more, this amount of money is nothing to Gaddafi.

Libya, with a population of just over 400 million, had a GDP of US$267 billion in 1987. In the same year, the GDP of Côte d'Ivoire, the "Pearl of West Africa", was only US$101 billion. Yet, Bovani was already complacent.

You have to know that Burkina Faso's annual GDP can hardly reach 24 billion US dollars. Libya's oil revenue is more than eleven times that of Burkina Faso. As a dictator, Gaddafi has control over this oil revenue, so he has always been a representative of wealth and power.

After chatting with Mohammed for a long time, Haniyev knew that Gaddafi asked his son to meet him just on a whim, perhaps because of Sankara, or simply because the revolution he helped Sankara promote harmed France's interests and damaged France's actions in Africa, and Gaddafi was happy to give him a reward.

But no matter what the situation is, Gaddafi does not have any demands on himself at the moment.

About forty minutes later, Haniyev and Kuzhugaitsky left the Leningrad Hotel, and the Libyan guards moved the gold box to their car.

After getting into the car, Haniyev asked, "Director, this gold is worth at least 10 rubles. Wouldn't it be a mistake for us to accept it?"

Kuzhugaitsky laughed and said, "No, diplomats always receive gifts from other countries. As long as they don't have too much wealth or conceal it, they won't be targeted by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the KGB. We will report to the minister later and say what you mean..."

Haniyev interrupted, "That's not what I meant. This gold was originally given to our Africa Department by Gaddafi in his personal capacity as a token of gratitude for the assistance our officials have provided to African countries over the years. Is that correct?"

After thinking for a moment, Kuzhugaitowski laughed.

"Don't tell me, that's exactly what I meant."

Chapter 159 Divide Money

A box of gold bars was worth a lot of money. Both Haniyev and Kuzhugaitsky were worried that too many people would know about it. After leaving the hotel, Haniyev did not dare to say anything. He carried the box with him and followed Kuzhugaitsky back to the African Department alone, and made an appointment to meet with the minister as soon as possible.

In the afternoon, Kuzhugaitsky finally received a call from Shevardnadze.

"The minister is back, let's go report to him."

Kuzhugaitsky and Haniyev once again carried the boxes to Shevardnadze's office.

After hearing the two men's reports and seeing a box of glittering gold bars, the minister asked, "You said these gold bars were gifts from Gaddafi to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the African Department. Why?"

Kujugaitsky spread his hands. "Perhaps it's because our African Division has been helping African countries establish democratic systems and building advanced industries and militaries. Isn't Gaddafi the Chairman of the Organization of African Unity? He's quite ambitious, so it's normal for him to want to build closer ties with us..."

African unity, Pan-Islamic unity and Arab unity are three voices that emerged after the independence of the colonies at the end of World War II. Theoretically, if these three concepts become reality, a united Africa, a new Arab federation or a larger Islamic world, no matter which political entity emerges, it will be a great power that can rival the five permanent members of the UN Security Council, and may even become a world-class power in a few decades.

However, Britain, France, the United States and the Soviet Union would not allow this idea to become a reality, and the reality is that it is difficult to implement because human nature is too complicated. Whether in the Arab world or Africa, there have been many ambitious heroes over the years who want to unify the world, but the result is always unattainable.

Gaddafi is such an ambitious man. He not only wants to be the master of Africa, but also wants to be the master of the Arab world. However, for a small country like Libya with a population of only a few million, this ambition is unrealistic.

Shevardnadze, the Foreign Minister who was once the First Secretary of Georgia, was one in a million in terms of both skills and vision. He had long known Gaddafi's personality and style of doing things. Although he had some doubts about the statements of Haniyev and Kuzhugaitsky, he still agreed.

“How many gold bars are there?”

“We just counted…”

Kurugaitosky was about to speak when Haniyev stopped him and interrupted him, "We didn't have time to count them just now. I heard from Gaddafi the younger that there were 30 bars. We think we should leave this gold with you, the Minister, and you will distribute it to our ministry and department as office expenses, right, Director?"

Kuzhugaitsky suddenly understood and said, "Yes, yes, yes."

Shevardnadze, known as the "Silver Fox" by Georgians, was a man of great wisdom. He naturally understood what Haniyev and the others meant. He smiled and said, "Since we have 30 gold bars, how about this? I'll notify the finance department to exchange the 30 gold bars for rubles. Half will be used for the ministry's expenses, and the other half will be used by the Africa Department. Kuzhugaitsky, you must take responsibility for this money. Every penny must be used for official purposes. No mistakes can be made."

Kuzhugaitsky nodded quickly and said, "I understand. Minister, this is what you ordered."

Shevardnadze asked some more questions about the two men's conversations with Mohammad Gaddafi. After a brief explanation, Kuzhugaitsky said, "I have asked the accompanying translator to write a detailed report. Haniyev and I will sign it and have it delivered to you."

Shevardnadze smiled and nodded, saying, "Very good. It must be truthful and leave nothing out. Perhaps the General Secretary will read it too."

A moment later, Haniyev and Kuzhugaitsky left the minister's office. Because of the box of gold, Kuzhugaitsky now looked at Haniyev differently.

In the past, Kuzhugaitsky was very dissatisfied with Haniyev. He thought that this young man was unruly. He was very bold in Chernobyl and did a good job in Yalta. He did not respect himself as the director very much, so he was always cold towards Haniyev.

Later, Haniyev started his own investment in a gold mine and participated in the revolution in Burkina Faso, which almost caused a diplomatic incident. Kuzhugaitsky began to hate Haniyev even more. He began to think that this young man was a lawless person.

However, after Haniyev used the gold bars that Gaddafi gave him personally as gifts to the "Africa Department" and the "Ministry of Foreign Affairs", Kuzhugaitsky began to like the young man again.

After Haniyev stopped him from talking and insisted that there were only 30 gold bars in the box, not 40, Kuzhugaitsky finally understood why this young man was able to rise step by step at such a young age and get into trouble repeatedly without being punished.

After coming out of the minister's office, Kuzhugaitsky looked at Haniyev again with great admiration.

Kuzhugaitsky believes that if he had known Haniyev when he was young, even if he had been friends with him, his current position would never be a small director. He would probably have become the secretary of a Russian province long ago.

The Soviet Union's work efficiency has always been low, but it always works quickly when money is involved.

At around 3 p.m. that day, the phone rang and woke up Haniyev, who was sleeping on the table.

"Go ahead, Haniyev."

Kuzhugaitsky's slightly excited voice came from the microphone: "Victor, the Ministry just allocated 4 rubles to our Africa Department. It should be those gold bars."

Haniyev smiled slightly and said, "Just keep the money. Find some excuse to get it reimbursed."

Kuzhugaitsky coughed lightly and said, "Come to my office and talk."

Haniyev got up and walked to the outer room. Ivan and Peter were translating several telegrams sent from Burkina Faso. Haniyev had just asked about them. The general content was inquiring about the situation of Haniyev and his party. Haniyev asked them to translate them truthfully and keep them on file, and reply after the minister's instructions.

After arriving at the director's office, Kuzhugaitosky pulled Haniyev to sit on the sofa and whispered to each other.

After talking for a full half hour, and only after Haniyev repeatedly expressed his unwillingness to use the money did Kuzhugaitsky reluctantly say, "Well, I just bought some printing presses and a new bus for the department a while ago. These 40,000 will be more than enough to cover the bills. I should have 7,000 or 8,000 rubles left. So, you can find some receipts and report the rest for your department's use. Okay, don't argue with me anymore. It's a deal."

Seeing the director's resolute attitude, Haniyev finally nodded and said, "Thank you very much for your care. We will invite you to dinner in a couple of days. Please do me a favor."

Kuzhugaitsky smiled and said, "Okay, you've been working in the company for more than two months and we haven't had a meal together yet. I'll secretly get two bottles of good wine from home and we'll find a private place."

The two smiled at each other. After knowing each other for a few months, they finally felt mutual trust for the first time.

Chapter 160 Classes in the Soviet Union

On December 24, 1987, the snowflakes falling from the sky dressed the whole of Moscow in a white cotton coat, and the orange street lights at night also covered the thick ice and snow with a layer of golden veil.

Haniyev walked along the Moscow River, his leather boots making a crunching sound on the snow.

Today is Christmas Eve in the United States, Britain, France and other countries, and tomorrow is the grandest Christmas in Western society.

Because of its political system, the Soviet Union suppressed religious beliefs and customs for a long time. Even though it was relaxed later, the Soviet Union was mainly Orthodox, and Christmas was calculated according to the Julian calendar, basically on January 7th every year, so it never celebrated Christmas as it does in the West.

However, after Gorbachev came to power and implemented reforms, relaxed restrictions on foreign media and allowed private capital to do business, the thinking of the Soviet people was slowly changing.

Walking on the streets of Moscow, Haniyev saw many shops hanging dolls of Father Frost and Snow Maiden, or decorative paintings of Father Frost and snowmen.

Father Frost is the Russian Santa Claus, and his image differs greatly from the Western Santa Claus. He is a favorite character of Soviet children during the New Year, and they also look forward to receiving advice from Father Frost and Snow Maiden.

Turning a small alley, Haniyev saw more shop doors and windows with pictures of not only Mr. Frost but also Santa Claus pulling a cart with reindeer.

All dessert shops, perfume shops, jewelry shops, bookstores, etc. that posted Santa Claus pictures and had Christmas trees in their rooms had good business. Most of the people coming in and out were young people dressed fashionably in French and Italian brand names. It was obvious that the Western Christmas had been introduced to the Soviet Union and was deeply loved by young people.

Haniyev exhaled a breath of white air and walked to a small market near a church. The market was closed at this time, but there was an old milk bar inside, which was a place for nearby residents and market vendors to eat. The prices were cheap, the portions were large, and it was very affordable.

It was already past dinner time. There was only an old lady watching over the stall in the milk bar. There was no one at the table. There were only two drunks hiding in the dark, drinking beer cautiously.

Haniyev walked to the empty dining car, ordered a glass of kvass and a bowl of lentil and bacon soup, then sat down in the corner, slowly eating his meal while watching the bustling young people outside the window.

About ten minutes later, Haniyev finished eating and Potanin came in wearing a coat and a thick hat.

After untying his clothes and placing them on a chair nearby, Potanin sat down, rubbed his hands, and asked, "Why did you want to drink here? Wouldn't it be better to go to your house or mine?"

Haniyev didn't explain, saying, "I was bored a while ago and was strolling around when I discovered this place. It's a state-run market, but bread, meat, eggs, milk, and vegetables are only distributed three times a day: morning, noon, and evening. People have to line up early to buy them because the food in this milk bar doesn't require ration coupons, you just have to pay for it. Many people choose to eat at the milk bar. I was hungry at the time, so I ate here too. I found the food quite good, especially after the market closes at night. Regular customers can still buy some wine here. Look at those two old comrades over there, they're the market security guards, they often drink here secretly."

Although the prohibition on alcohol is still in effect, it is becoming increasingly relaxed as reforms continue to change the lives of Soviet people.

But for ordinary people, if they are discovered by the Ministry of Internal Affairs police, they will still be fined, so they still drink secretly.

Potanin chuckled and said, "I didn't expect you to have this hobby. You like to hang out with the common people?"

Haniyev stood up and bought two more bottles of wine, placed them in front of Potanin and said, "I don't want to be separated from the masses. I used to think that the Soviet Union was so powerful during the Lenin and Stalin eras. Even Hitler was defeated by the brave and fearless Red Army. Why is it that after decades, our Soviet Union has become increasingly weak, while the United States has become increasingly rich?

Many of our cadres became detached from the masses after they gained power. Over time, they no longer understood the people's needs, were unaware of their troubles, were unwilling to understand their thoughts, and would not help them solve their problems. Then, those in power became the privileged class of the Soviet Union, riding high on the heads of the people and acting tyrannically.

In the eyes of Soviet officials and the second, third, and even fourth generations of the Red Army, they were completely different from the 2.8 million Soviet citizens. Soviet citizens were worthless consumables, and they never cared about the life and death of consumables..."

Potanin was silent. He silently opened the bottle and poured a glass for himself and Haniyev.

Haniyev took the glass and took a long sip, then continued, "But the people aren't really consumables. Consumables don't have thoughts, but the people know how to think and resist. The Soviet Union boasts about itself to the skies, but in reality, whether it's the huge gap between life in the Soviet Union and the United States, or the gap between East Germany and West Germany, the Soviet people no longer have faith in socialism. Many people even feel disgusted after seeing the contrast between the Soviet Union's privilege and corruption and its so-called great goals. Therefore, we, the Soviet Union, have been rapidly losing public support in recent years..."

Potanin took a sip of wine, choked, and coughed violently several times.

Haniyev patted him on the back and continued, "I'm worried that as I rise in power, I'll forget the people. So I often go to the markets and streets to see how ordinary people really live. To be honest, the Soviet Union is rotten to the core. Gorbachev's reforms are useless. I'm really worried about its future..."

Potanin sighed softly. "Victor, you make me feel ashamed. I'm truly insignificant in front of you. Sankara is a revolutionary, you're a believer in socialism, and I'm one of those extravagant and dissolute "Red Third Generation" people you talk about. If you hadn't said it today, I'd never considered these issues before..."

To be honest, many students from the academy think the multi-party system advocated by universities and some intellectuals is great, and they don't care about the Soviet Union still having the Communist Party of the Soviet Union in charge. I used to think the same way, thinking that the country's situation is not important, what matters is that I make money. So I had already decided to resign and use my connections in the Ministry of Foreign Trade to do business, but your idea has touched me, and maybe I can focus more on politics..."

Haniyev's face changed and he looked at Potanin in surprise.

He never imagined that he would influence the future Russian oligarchs. Perhaps it was because Potanin was too young and had some sense of mission and conscience in his heart, or perhaps he was very important in his heart.