Chapter 24 Great Hero
There was an enamel lunch box with a sickle and an axe printed on it, but inside it was an exquisite porcelain spoon. At this moment, Andre, half lying on the hospital bed, looked at the slender and tender little hands, holding the spoon, taking a mouthful of porridge, and blowing it to his mouth. The red lips were so tempting.
"Come on, open your mouth." The female doctor said, putting the porridge spoon to Andre's mouth. He opened his mouth, and the sticky and sweet porridge flowed into Andre's mouth, making his heart sweet.
Soviet people love to drink porridge. Although they also grow grain, they can hardly make any delicious food. It is either baked black bread or sticky porridge, which is their traditional food.
This kind of porridge is similar to the rice porridge in China and is also considered the staple food of the Soviet people.
The female doctor helped Andre to the bed and brought him food. Thinking that Andre's hand had just been dislocated, she took the initiative to feed him.
Andre felt hot all over, took two sips, and said, "Doctor, please put the food here, I can eat it myself."
"No, your wrist is also injured. You can't move too much." The female doctor said, "You are a great hero of our Far East Military Region. You still have to fly in the sky again. If your injury does not heal well, it will affect your flying career."
Great hero? Although he was a child of destiny, there were many pilots in the Far East Military Region. How did he become a great hero? Andrei was very curious. He remembered that when he first met the female doctor, she called him Captain Andrei. Andrei vaguely remembered that his military rank was Lieutenant.
Suddenly, Andre reacted. Something was wrong. The lunch box was so clean and the spoon was so delicate. It was definitely not from the cafeteria. Could it be that this female doctor brought the food from home and ate it herself?
"Doctor Ekaterina, Doctor Ekaterina, there is a problem with the patient in Ward 16."
"Okay, I'll be there right away." The female doctor turned her head and said, putting the lunch box on the bedside table, stood up and hurried out. When she reached the door, she looked back at Andre, signaling to him with her eyes that she would come back after she finished seeing the patient.
Ekaterina? It means pure in Russian. What a nice name! Andrei reached out and picked up the spoon. The doctor was very busy, so he didn't want her to provide him with extra care. Although he secretly hoped that the doctor would come over again, he still ate with big mouthfuls.
"Andrei, you're awake? That's great!" At this moment, a voice came from outside. Andrei looked outside and found that it was the regiment commander Colonel Ivanov!
"Captain!" Andrei shouted to Ivanov and was about to stand up and salute.
"Andrei, please sit down!" Ivanov said, "I came to Vladivostok to report on my work at the Air Defense Command, and I came to see you. You were in a coma for two days, and we were all scared."
In a coma for two days? Andre couldn't help wondering, it seems that he was hit hard at that time? By the way, what about the Americans across the strait? Are they doing anything new?
Thinking of this, Andrei couldn't help but ask: "Captain, have the Americans continued to cross the median line of the strait and put pressure on us?"
Hearing Andrei's question, Ivanov, who is nearly 40 years old, laughed heartily: "Andrei, this is all your credit. Last time, you drove our MiG-25 all the way to the sky above Hokkaido and chased the American E-2 early warning aircraft. The Americans were terrified and thought that all the aircraft models in service could not compete with our MiG-25, so they stopped this kind of armed provocation. In order to commend your contribution, your superiors decided to award you a first-class medal for service to the motherland in the Soviet Armed Forces, and at the same time, promote your rank to captain. You have become a great hero now, and even Pravda published your deeds on the front page."
First Class Order for Service to the Motherland in the Armed Forces of the USSR, a new medal established on October 28, 1974. It is awarded to soldiers of all branches of the Soviet Army, border guards and internal security forces who have made outstanding achievements in military and political training, maintaining a high level of combat readiness of the troops and mastering new technical weapons, who have performed well in their service, who have successfully completed special tasks assigned by the commander, who have shown courage and selfless spirit in fulfilling their military duties, and who have other merits during their service in the Armed Forces of the USSR.
Since it was only established last year, only more than 100 medals have been issued so far, which is a great honor.
So that's it! Andrei finally understood that he had been in a coma for two days and had escaped punishment. Otherwise, he would have been scolded by Kozhedub after getting off the plane, and might even have been asked to write a self-criticism. But now, his superiors were happy and gave him an honor and promoted his military rank, so he didn't have to worry about being scolded.
Come to think of it, my behavior has brought honor to the country. In the rivalry between the United States and the Soviet Union, the time is coming when the Soviet Union will overwhelm the Americans in momentum. The Americans have just pulled themselves out of the quagmire of the Vietnam War, having suffered a setback and their momentum has been dampened.
Moreover, this time, his own MiG-25 was really amazing. Before Belenko's defection, the US Air Force had a great fear of the MiG-25.
Belenko! Thinking of Belenko, Andrei felt nervous again. As long as the Americans did not obtain the secrets of the MiG-25, they would think that this was a powerful fighter made of Soviet titanium alloy, and its performance far exceeded any American model, so the Americans would not act rashly.
"Right now, the Americans are still exerting diplomatic pressure on us to hand over the EP-3. Now, it seems that Moscow will not return it to the United States unless it thoroughly studies the technology on the aircraft. Therefore, we still have to be on guard against any tricks played by the Americans. If something happens, our 513th Regiment will still be on the front line."
"Captain, where is Captain Belenko?" Andrei asked Ivanov. "As I recall, his fighter plane had a malfunction and he did not participate in the battle last time."
"Yes, his fighter plane is still being repaired in the hangar. He has been unable to fly for the past week," said Ivanov.
Well, as long as his fighter plane is still under repair and he cannot fly, everything will be fine, and Andre felt relieved.
Ivanov said a few more words to Andrei, asking him to rest and recover, and then left in a hurry. Andrei began to think about it.
The Americans would never admit defeat, especially since this was the first time during the Cold War that an American plane had landed on Soviet soil and there was no precedent for how to deal with it. Perhaps Moscow really intended to treat this EP-3 as its own and thoroughly study its electronic technology.
I should recover from my injuries and return to the army as soon as possible! Especially, there is the matter of Belenko. If Belenko flies the MiG-25 to surrender to the enemy, the two sides will be tied.
Thinking of this, Andrei thought of Anne, the classmate he met in Qiuguyevka last time. How could it be such a coincidence? That girl from Berlin University was quite suspicious!
Without solid evidence, he couldn't report it to the KGB to arrest people, but he couldn't just watch this happen. Thinking of this, Andrei took out a Dnieper brand cigarette from the side and was about to light it.
"Hey, comrade pilot, for your health, you can't smoke!" Just then, the voice of the female doctor was heard outside.