Chapter 154 Special Train
Since March, oh no, it should be said that since the idea of the Battle of Kursk was determined, the entire railway trunk line that runs through the north and south of Kursk and connects Kursk with Voronezh has become a dedicated troop transport line that operates day and night.
On these lines, all civilian vehicles were stopped and all trains were requisitioned. Every day and every hour, military trains with anti-aircraft guns installed on the front and carriages could be seen running back and forth on these railways. Under the trains and on both sides of the railway lines, there were also large groups of soldiers carrying equipment running westward to the battlefield.
At the Gostishchevo railway station, three military jeeps covered in mud were parked under the platform. Arseniy, dressed in military uniform, was the first to jump off the jeep.
"Good morning, Comrade Lieutenant Colonel!" A dozen soldiers gathered on the platform waiting for the train hurriedly stood up, greeted him and saluted him.
Arseni returned a military salute absentmindedly, then trotted to the back and opened the door for Yuri. When Yuri lowered his head to get out of the compartment, he deliberately stretched out his hand to shield Yuri's head - this guy who had followed Yuri since shortly after the war began and was promoted to lieutenant colonel as a guard was now becoming more and more servile.
After getting off the train , Yuri stood outside the platform, straightened the hem of his military uniform to make it look straighter, and then looked around.
The Gostishchevo railway station was extremely busy at this time, but most of the passengers were troops who had just arrived or equipment and supplies that had just been transported here, and there were very few trains heading north.
This time, Yuri was going to take a train from Gostishchevo to Smolodnoye. The train he was going to take was a special train specially arranged by Golikov - two locomotives connected to a carriage.
While Yuri was watching, a major came hurriedly from not far away. When he ran to Yuri, he stood up straight, saluted crisply, and said loudly: "Comrade General Yuri Arkhipovich, your military train is ready. Excuse me, are you going to set off now ?"
Yuri had a serious expression, said nothing, just nodded slightly.
The major seemed a little nervous. He quickly stepped aside and gestured for Yuri to go to the reserved military train.
"Comrade General Yuri Arkhipovich," the major said cautiously as he let Yuri walk towards the train, "Originally this train was specially prepared for you by the headquarters, but 40 minutes ago, the Military Committee called and arranged for several comrades from the song and dance troupe to board the train."
Yuri turned his head and gave the major a questioning look.
"It's several comrades from the Red Banner Song and Dance Troupe, including Major Yuri Alexandrovich Alexandrov," the major explained hastily, "They are going to the Central Front, so..."
"I understand," Yuri nodded without raising any objections.
To be honest, he is not a person who likes to be special, and he has no special pursuit for personal enjoyment. It's just taking a train, there is no need to take a special train for himself.
Seeing that Yuri did not raise any objections, the major was obviously relieved. You know, the Military Commission's arrangement of people on the military train made it very difficult for him, the major, to do so. However, there was no way. The station was too busy and the train operation schedule was very tight. The special train to send Yuri was finally adjusted after Golikov made the request. It was impossible to add another one at this time.
Following the major, Yuri quickly found the extra train. However, when he arrived at the train, a group of people were talking and laughing as they boarded the train. There were about 30 or 40 people in the group, both men and women, all young and lively. Perhaps they had just finished a performance, and most of them still had makeup on their faces. They crowded at the entrance of the carriage, blocking the entire passage to the train.
When in Moscow, Yuri had seen the Red Banner Song and Dance Ensemble's performance. He even knew the conductor, Yuri Alexandrovich, and knew that the major was the son of the troupe's head, Major General Alexander Vasilyevich Alexandrov. However, he took a quick look outside the carriage and did not see the major comrade.
The major obviously did not expect that this group of people would choose to board the train at this time. Seeing them occupying the aisle, cold sweat broke out on his forehead.
"General Yuri Arkhipovich is here, you..." the major shouted, trying to get the young men to make way for Yuri.
However, his shout was interrupted by Yuri, and the station was so noisy that no one could hear him even if he shouted.
"Let them go first," Yuri stopped the major and shook his head.
The major opened his mouth, but in the end, nothing came out.
Dozens of young people finally squeezed onto the train, and Yuri began to board the train under the leadership of the major.
There was only this one carriage on the entire military train. After Yuri got on, he found that the carriage was already full of young people from the song and dance troupe. Only the two rows of seats guarding the entrance had empty seats.
The major who arranged for Yuri to board the train turned pale when he saw this. After receiving the call from the Military Committee, he had racked his brains to make adjustments. Originally, Yuri was arranged to sit at the bottom of the train, where the original two rows of seats were removed and a row of specially made sofa-style soft chairs were fixed in the vacant positions. A table was specially arranged in front of the seat, which was covered with red velvet and was very soft.
But what about now? There were already four young men sitting on the soft chairs, and even two young girls were squeezed onto the table covered with red velvet.
"Well, Comrade Major, your work is done," Yuri knew what was going on at a glance. This major was obviously not very good at doing things, or at least he was not organized. However, that didn't matter. It was only a two-hour drive, and he was not a pampered noble who had to sit in a soft seat.
"Thank Comrade Golikov for me," Yuri said with a smile, stopping the major who was about to chase them away. "Also, please arrange for the departure as soon as possible. I'm in a hurry."
"Yes, Comrade General Yuri Arkhipovich," the major quickly saluted Yuri, and before getting off the car, he deliberately looked back at the occupied soft seat, his eyes filled with annoyance.
He motioned for Arseni and the two guards to sit in a row of empty chairs at the entrance, while Yuri himself occupied another row of seats across the aisle.
Through the window, the major who had just jumped out of the carriage blew a whistle on the platform, and at the same time, drove the soldiers who stayed at the side of the carriage to retreat to the outside.
Yuri sat on a bench, fumbled in his pocket to take out a pack of cigarettes, took one and put it in his mouth, and was about to light it when a flash of light appeared in front of his eyes. Two brand new backpacks were dropped on the chair opposite him. At the same time, two clear voices said in unison: "Hello, Comrade Lieutenant Colonel!"
Turning his head in surprise, Yuri saw two slender waists tied with belts. Looking along the waist, he saw two straight backs.
"Hello," Arseni said, standing across from him at his seat.
Only then did Yuri realize that the people with their backs to him were two female soldiers who were late for boarding the train. As soon as they entered the carriage, they saw Arseni, a lieutenant colonel, so they threw away their backpacks and saluted him.
He looked down at himself and saw that he was wearing a black leather windbreaker, which was issued to him when he was commanding the Stalin Campaign. He had been wearing it during this period because he liked this pure black style.
This leather windbreaker donated by the Americans was of good quality, but it had one shortcoming: it could not show his military rank, because it had neither shoulder straps nor collar badges. Originally, there was a place for collar badges on the large lapel of the windbreaker, but Yuri never got it. Now, he only wore a military cap, and this cap with a red hoop could not show his military rank.
In the aisle, Arseni invited the two female soldiers to sit in their seats, but given his rank and the fact that they were strangers to each other, the two female soldiers certainly would not actually go over and sit down. After a few polite words, the two girls, who didn't notice anything unusual, had already sat down opposite Yuri.
After the two girls sat down, they seemed to notice Yuri sitting opposite them. Although the military cap did not reflect Yuri's military rank, the red velvet and red pipes on it showed that he was a commander of infantry or motorized infantry. Moreover, Yuri had fought in the battlefield and had rich experience in commanding large troops. His aura was also very strong. Coupled with the leather jacket, it showed that his identity was extraordinary.
Therefore, as soon as the two female soldiers sat down, they saw Yuri sitting opposite them and hurriedly stood up, saluted him, and said crisply: "Hello, commander comrade."
The two girls were not very old, probably around 18 or 19 years old, and had pretty faces. With their makeup still on, they looked gorgeous, which was pleasing to the eye.
"Hello," Yuri raised his arm and gestured to the side of his head as a return of greeting. He smiled and nodded and said, "Please take a seat. You can be relaxed."
Just at this moment, the train whistle sounded, and then the body of the carriage shook violently. The two girls sat down, but they sat very straight, obviously very stiff.
"Is the performance in Bykovka over?" Feeling the train start to move, Yuri looked at the two girls opposite and smiled.
"Yes, comrade ," the girl sitting on the right was obviously a little bolder. She answered first, "Did you watch our performance?"
Yuri smiled and nodded. In reality, he didn't have time to watch any performance.
