Chapter 672 Dawn (2)
"Members of the Communist Party and the Communist Youth League, take immediate action to implement the party's work arrangements and Comrade Stalin's instructions with a high sense of mission and responsibility, and actively, steadily and efficiently assist all state institutions and people in need to evacuate... "
"We must comprehensively, cleanly and completely clear the country and prevent the German fascists from getting a grain of food, a drop of oil or a clean water source..."
"Pack up everything and take it away, destroy what cannot be taken away, and bury what cannot be destroyed on the spot..."
"The garrison headquarters once again reiterated that 12 noon on October 5th is the final moment for Kuibyshev to evacuate. Any words and actions that obstruct the retreat and destroy the strong walls and clear the country will be regarded as sabotaging the revolution. Any personnel included in the retreat list who refuses to retreat will be It is regarded as surrender and betrayal, and can be immediately punished with the highest security measures (death penalty) in accordance with the Criminal Code!”
"Comrades and the masses, we must believe in the Party and the Red Army, further unite closely around the Party Central Committee with Comrade Stalin as the leader, and use all means to fight against the fascist bandits. Today's temporary retreat is to return victoriously tomorrow - retreat The punches that come out are always stronger and more powerful!"
Lieutenant General Simonov, commander of the Kuibyshev garrison, walked in the center of the city, carefully looking at this place that he was very familiar with, while listening to the high-pitched tweeter with some melancholy, and he had no definite idea of where to go in the future.
He moved to Kuibyshev from Moscow more than 2 years ago. In response to the crazy German attack, Stalin ordered all unnecessary state agencies and foreign agencies to evacuate to Kuibyshev, a beautiful city on the banks of the Volga River. Even the body of Comrade Lenin was moved from Red Square and transported here. In addition to these institutions, all Moscow universities, scientific research institutions, museums, art galleries and other important materials and cultural relics were transferred to Kuibyshev.
This place became the rear capital and paradise of the Soviet Union to the letter. It enjoyed the highest level of material supply and protection during the war, and at the same time had sufficient resources of all kinds (including the army). Even when the Soviet food supply was at its most tense, There are no cases of people starving to death in Kuibyshev - here are either important international friends, cadres of the party and state, or important intellectuals and other party supporters. How can there be situations where people are starving to death everywhere?
Kuibyshev was in a panic when he first moved. With the victory of the Moscow defense battle and the stabilization of the frontline war, the people left behind became optimistic again. Not only did they quickly restore normal production, life, and teaching order, they even launched voluntary labor to build new buildings. There are many entertainment and leisure facilities - after all, everyone stays in Moscow for a long time, and you will not be able to survive a particularly boring day.
The shift in work around the war soon occurred. Since the war is the current overriding task, other non-urgent and unimportant work began to be moved to the back. Resources and funding were even significantly reduced, and all departments shifted their attention. to other aspects that are slightly related to their own functions and are consistent with the actual war. For example, the fine arts system of the Ministry of Culture published and printed a large number of propaganda posters and posters reflecting the war on the front line. The music and drama system was not to be outdone, and dramas, operas, dances and other works reflecting war stories were continuously staged, while the writers and the Federation of Literary and Art Circles system He also wrote a series of evocative and evocative works.
Another example is the Department of Religious and Ethnic Affairs. On the one hand, it searched for evidence from archives and historical documents to prove that all ethnic groups in the great Soviet Union system were one family, emphasizing unity to jointly oppose German aggression; on the other hand, it exiled and punished Comrade Stalin. Some ethnic groups are looking for evidence to show that they have been destroyers of the cause of reunification in history and have historical traditions and current behaviors of separatism. All in all, whatever the Party Central Committee calls for, Kuibyshev can quickly respond to the call and launch propaganda.
Under such circumstances, Kuibyshev's cultural, publicity, and educational undertakings were unprecedentedly prosperous. In addition, the city was much smaller than Moscow. Many departments and personnel who were not familiar with it began to get closer, with frequent interactions and exchanges. Leaders and comrades The original superior privileges have temporarily disappeared, and everything is prosperous.
Simonov, who has been serving as the garrison commander, thought that this was just a brief transitional period and that Kuibyshev's institutions and personnel would soon return to Moscow. Unexpectedly, more than two years later, not only could these institutions and personnel not be able to move back, , but also to move to a more distant place - Omsk in Siberia. This couldn't help but make him sad, but he had no time to be sad. All the work of organizing the retreat fell on the garrison headquarters. In the past two months, he had spent countless efforts to complete the evacuation work, but finally no major mistakes were made.
"Has Comrade Lenin's body arrived safely? How was the situation along the way?" He turned around and asked his confidential staff.
"I arrived in Omsk 9 days ago and the overall situation is good."
"How is the transportation of various cultural relics, collections and important archives going?"
"All have been transported."
"People and institutions are being evacuated."
"The advance batch, the first batch, the second batch and the third batch have been completed, the fourth batch is in the process of being transported, and the fifth and final batch is being assembled and transferred in an orderly manner..."
"Are there any leading comrades and important personnel in various agencies who are upset or unwilling to retreat?"
"Everything is settled, no problem." The timing of saying this required a wry smile on the staff's face. When he heard that the German army might occupy this place and arrange for the personnel to retreat, the bosses in the state agencies immediately exploded: no one was willing to retreat. , they can only complain that they are not on the priority list for retreat - although the special offer of leading comrades has temporarily disappeared, the right to prioritize retreat will not be reduced.
What gave the headquarters a headache was how to arrange the retreat. When some big shots retreated, they wanted to take all their belongings with them: high-end furniture, grand pianos, Persian tapestries, precious porcelain, as well as items that were "kept for the country" from an unknown country's warehouse. "Take home and learn to appreciate" antiques and oil paintings. All kinds of greetings, backdoors, approval of notes, and documents came one after another. They justly requested the garrison headquarters to provide more, faster, and higher-priority transportation capabilities for the organization, which caused a lot of trouble for the garrison headquarters.
Everyone here cannot be offended. Who knows if there is anyone who has the intelligence to bring the situation to Moscow? Simonov is an old Bolshevik and was Stalin’s guard battalion commander during the civil war. He handles all aspects of relations in an orderly manner and is a good person. The work was extremely safe - otherwise, how could Stalin trust him to serve as the garrison commander in Kuibyshev?
He is not worried about anyone making trouble for him, but at this critical moment, if someone makes trouble for Stalin, Zhukov or Comrade Vasilevsky over such a trivial matter, he feels that he is committing a crime against the party and the people! Comrade Stalin arranged himself in Kuibyshev to do all this work properly, and gave himself enough power. He could not complain, let alone complain about being tired.
He completed various tasks with great perseverance and ability. Objectively, the rapid advance of the German army also played a role in promoting it. I heard that the German army had reached the other side of the Volga River and would soon cross the river to attack. Those nagging and entangled people After a while, the middle-level cadres angrily gave up the idea of moving all the tattered belongings from their homes and just wanted to escape quickly.
After spending countless sleepless nights, Simonov, who had barely slept for a minute in the past week, finally found time to take a good rest in the morning. He thought he would get up in 2 hours, but he was too sleepy. The guard couldn't bear to wake him up, so he let him sleep for two more hours and didn't get up until 11 noon. Fortunately, there wasn't much going on. His subordinates and deputies carried out various tasks in an orderly manner. He didn't embarrass his guards - he was also from the security force, and he only made a few light criticisms.
The square in the center of the city still had traces of the German bombing. Simonov stood facing the wind and couldn't help but sigh and asked: "Where are the enemies?"
"The pontoon bridge has basically been set up and we are about to cross the river. In order to hinder our rapid retreat, the enemy carried out large-scale bombings on railway lines and highway lines, and many vehicles were hit by bullets."
"All hit vehicles will be overturned and destroyed, leaving nothing useful to the enemy." After a moment, he said with self-mockery, "I guess the Germans don't like those rags either..."
The confidential staff officer didn't know how to answer this sentence. The bell tower rang 12 times, and the time for the final retreat finally came. Simonov's originally relieved expression suddenly turned serious. He turned his head and shouted: "Petrovsky, I give you 2 hours, take the guard regiment with you." Search door to door. If there are still people who have not retreated, they must be forced to retreat, otherwise..."
"Report to the internal affairs troops to implement the highest security measures after verification." The other party immediately added.
"It's too late!" Simonov gritted his teeth and squeezed out a sentence from his throat, "No matter who it is, kill him on the spot!"
"this……"
"Is it difficult?" His sharp eyes as sharp as a sword immediately pierced him.
"Yes, I promise to complete the mission!"
"The inspection of the whole city ends at 6 o'clock in the evening. At 12 o'clock in the evening, the garrison headquarters and the guard troops are the last batch to retreat. Do you know what to do?"
"Execute the scorched earth plan!" Petrovsky responded quickly.
"Very good, let's do it!" Simonov waved his hand vigorously, indicating that the other party could take action.
Facts have proved that his order is necessary. There are indeed some fish that have slipped through the net and have not retreated. They all boarded the retreat train obediently under the gunpoint of the security forces. Starting at 6 p.m., the guard regiment and engineering troops began dousing kerosene and planting explosives throughout the city.
At 11:45 at night, three red flares flew into the sky, and the engineers suppressed them. With the huge roar, Kuibyshev was shrouded in a cloud of dust. The explosion quickly triggered a fire. From a distance, the entire The city is boiling with flames and falling into raging flames...
The last train set off. Simonov looked at the city that was moving away and secretly said in his heart: "Farewell, Kuibyshev, I will come back one day..."