After the Istrian battalion entered Susinich, they found that the entire city was deserted. No one could be seen, whether it was Germans or local residents. Seeing this situation, Sokov quickly ordered the company commanders of each company to launch a search operation in the city in platoon units.
Sokov led the guard platoon to search along the street. When he saw that the streets were littered with trucks, sleds, weapons and ammunition, and various supplies abandoned by the German troops when they fled, he couldn't help but wonder: What happened in the city to allow such people to escape? The Germans didn't even have the courage to hold on, so they abandoned so many supplies and fled in a hurry?
Several gunshots not far away immediately aroused the vigilance of the soldiers. They hid nearby and looked around with their guns, vigilantly observing whether there were any enemies nearby. Sokov hid under the cabin of a truck, listening to the sparse shooting sounds, but soon discovered that the gunfire did not become more intensive, but soon stopped. He judged that it must be another search force that encountered the lone enemy and had a small-scale firefight.
Hearing that the gunfire had stopped, Sokov stood up, looked around, and then said loudly: "Comrades, it's okay. It should be the lone German soldier who has been eliminated by our soldiers. Let's move on." !" Following Sokov's order, the soldiers stood up from their hiding places and continued to advance along the street with their weapons in hand.
During the search, Sokov suddenly saw a luxurious three-story building in front of him, with a black car parked at the door. Not only Sokov saw it, but the soldiers in the guard platoon also saw it. Seryosha quickly came to Sokov and said with some excitement: "Misha, it seems that this is the German army's headquarters."
When Sokov saw the beautiful car at the door, he first thought that this must be the location of an important institution of the German army. When he heard what Seryosha said, he quickly ordered loudly: "Pavel, take a squad with you." Stay on guard outside, and the rest of you will follow me inside!"
There was still no one in the building, and the corridors and rooms were littered with wine bottles, half-used first aid kits, bloody bandages, empty bullet clips, and cigarette butts scattered everywhere. Sokov searched carefully for a long time, but found no maps or documents left by the Germans. It seemed that even if the Germans evacuated in a hurry, they carefully took away or destroyed these things to prevent them from being obtained by the Soviet army and leaked. own troop deployment and direction of action.
Seryosha came to Sokov's side, took out half a pack of German cigarettes that he found somewhere, took out one and handed it to Sokov, and said angrily: "Misha, I just went to the communication room to see, I wanted to see if I could get a code book or something like that, but the Germans had already blown it up."
Seryosha struck a match and helped Sokov light his cigarette. Just when he was about to light a cigarette for himself, he accidentally saw a portrait of Hitler hanging on the wall. He threw the match on the ground and walked over with an unlit cigarette in his mouth. He took off the portrait, threw it on the ground and stamped it twice with his foot. Probably still unsatisfied, he took out a dagger from his boot and drew a swastika on Hitler's face. After doing all this, he put the dagger back into his boot, struck a match and lit the cigarette in his mouth, puffing on the smoke while admiring his masterpiece.
Sokov finished smoking, threw the cigarette butt on the ground, crushed it with his toes, and said to Seryosha: "Let's go, comrade platoon leader, we have to continue the search."
The two led the soldiers out of the headquarters. Seryosha suddenly turned to face the building, pointed to the roof and said to Sokov: "Misha, since it is the German headquarters that our battalion occupied first, we should go find an interview." The red flag is on the roof."
Sokov once heard someone say that according to the tradition of the Russian army, whoever is the first to plant the flag on the roof of the most important building in the city during a siege counts as this, even if the fighting in the city continues. This force took the lead in occupying the city. Therefore, after Seryozha reminded him, he quickly said: "Seryozha, you go now. I don't care what you think of, but you must find a flag and put it on the roof of the building."
Not long after Seryosha left, a soldier from the Second Company ran over panting and reported to Sokov: "Comrade Battalion Commander, we found a covered truck in the central square containing important supplies. Something, the company commander ordered me to come over and ask you to take a look."
Hearing that there was something important, Sokov replied unambiguously: "Let's go!" After walking a few steps, he suddenly remembered the red flag on the roof of the building, so he quickly stopped and called two A more clever soldier asked them to wait here for Seryosha to come back. Then he led the security platoon and followed the soldiers who came to report, and walked quickly along the street towards the city center.
When he arrived at the central square, still following him far away, Sokov saw Andre leading a dozen soldiers to surround a truck parked next to the black marble statue of Peter the Great. Seeing Sokov and his people coming over, Andre quickly stepped forward to greet him.
"Comrade Second Lieutenant," Sokov nodded to Andrei and asked bluntly: "What is loaded in the car?"
"Comrade Battalion Commander," Andrei said excitedly, "You'd better come and see for yourself." After that, he acted as a guide from the front and led Sokov to the back of the truck.
Sokov looked at the carriage with the tarpaulin open and saw a dozen large wooden boxes neatly placed inside. When he was about to ask what was in the box, he saw Andrei had climbed into the car on hands and knees, and leaned down and stretched out his hand to Sokov, ready to help him get into the car.
After Sokov climbed into the carriage, Andrei opened the lid of a wooden box, took out a huge picture frame from inside, and said in an excited voice: "Comrade Battalion Commander, look at what this is?"
Sokov saw what Andre was holding in his hand, which was a portrait: an old man with a long white beard and dressed in black, sitting in an armchair with his legs crossed and a chair on his knees. An open book. Sokov's eyes moved to the lower right corner of the portrait and saw a scrawled signature there.
Before he could recognize whose signature it was, Andre said in a voice slightly changed due to excitement: "Comrade Battalion Commander, do you recognize it? The person in the painting is Leo Tolstoy. One of the many portraits of Tolstoy painted by Repin, and the most famous one."
"Oh my god," after listening to Andrei's explanation, Sokov couldn't help exclaiming in a low voice: "It's actually a painting by Repin." He pointed to the other boxes with his hand, "Can it be said that these boxes Are they also filled with famous Russian paintings?”
"Yes, that's the case." Andrei carefully put Repin's oil paintings into the wooden box and continued: "In addition to Repin's paintings, there are also Ivan Kramskoy, Victor ?The works of Vasheletsov and others..."
Regarding the great Russian painters, Sokov only knew Repin. Even if he had heard the names of the rest, he forgot them in a blink of an eye. After he waited patiently for Andre to finish speaking, he ordered him: "Comrade Second Lieutenant, you personally lead people to take good care of these oil paintings. No one is allowed to come near this place without my order. These are precious things in Russia." We must not let any mistakes slip through our wealth, do you understand?"
"I understand, Comrade Battalion Commander." Andre straightened his back in the carriage and replied, "I will protect these precious cultural relics just like I protect my own eyes."
Sokov got off the carriage and saw a large group of soldiers coming from the other end of the square. He thought that the follow-up troops of the 11th Guards Division had arrived, so he went to meet them.
There was a colonel in the crowd. When he saw Sokov approaching, he quickly stopped him: "Comrade Captain, which unit are you in?"
"Hello, comrade colonel." Sokov stood at attention and saluted the colonel before replying: "We are the Istria Battalion, currently under the command of the 11th Guards Division. We have just completed the search of the city."
After listening to Sokov's report, the colonel nodded slightly, and then said: "I am Colonel Sergei Ichi, commander of the 972nd Regiment of the 324th Infantry Division. Do you know where the Germans have gone?"
Although the colonel's tone was a bit aggressive, Sokov still replied politely: "Comrade colonel, after our battalion entered the city, no trace of the enemy was found. Although there were sporadic exchanges of fire in individual areas, we have not captured them yet. captive."
Just as the colonel and his men left, a soldier Sokov left at the entrance of the German command post hurried over and reported to him: "Comrade battalion commander, the division commander has entered the city. Please go see him."
As Sokov followed the soldiers toward the German headquarters, he casually asked: "Has the red flag been put on the roof?"
"Yes, Comrade Battalion Commander, it has been inserted." The soldier replied in a panic.
Sokov thought that the soldier was so excited when answering his own questions, so he didn't think much about it. When they arrived at the gate of the German headquarters, many commanders and fighters had gathered outside the gate. Everyone, including General Chernyshev, commander of the 11th Guards Division, looked up at the red flag flying on the roof.
Seeing that the red flag was already flying on the roof, Sokov quickly ran behind Chernyshev, raised his hand in salute and said loudly: "Comrade division commander, Captain Sokov of the Istria Battalion has been ordered to come, please You direct!"
Chernyshev turned around, without any smile on his face, but asked with a straight face: "Captain Sokov, what on earth is going on? Since your battalion is the first unit to rush into Sushinich , why not put the red flag on the roof of the building?"
Sokov looked up at the roof. A red flag with Lenin's face embroidered in the middle was fluttering in the wind. He pointed at the flag with his hand and said puzzledly: "Comrade division commander, isn't that the red flag?"
"That's the flag of the 324th Infantry Division." Chernyshov said in a tone that hates iron but not steel. "Now it's the flag of the friendly forces flying on the roof. In other words, the honor of being the first to occupy the city belongs to the infantry. From the 324th Division. Do you understand?"
After Sokov waited for Chernyshev to finish speaking, he looked around the crowd on the left and right, trying to find any trace of Seryosha. But there were so many people that for a while he didn't see anyone, so he shouted at the top of his lungs: "Seryozha, where are you?"
"Comrade Battalion Commander," Seryosha, holding a piece of red cloth in his hand, struggled to squeeze in front of Sokov and said with a depressed expression: "When I came back from looking for the flag, I found that the friendly flag was already flying on the roof of the building. ”
"What on earth is going on?" Sokov turned his attention to the soldiers leading the way and asked angrily: "Didn't I ask you to guard the door? Why do you want the people of the 324th Infantry Division to put their military flags? On the roof?"
The soldier replied with a red face: "It was a colonel who led people in at that time. I... couldn't stop him!"
