Chapter 376
The ranking of the funeral procession for the deceased leader is of course very particular. Those standing in the first line must be those in the first echelon of the core of power. This is beyond doubt. Although Yuri's ranking in the party and the government is not low, he is obviously not qualified to stand in the first line. Therefore, he does not understand why Comrade Stalin made such an arrangement to put him in the first line.
That's right, with the death of Comrade Zhdanov, there were indeed vacancies in the first echelon. Considering that Kaganovich had been marginalized and Molotov was also suspected by Comrade Stalin, and Kosygin, who was originally the most qualified to enter this echelon, was also implicated, there were even more vacancies in the first echelon.
But no matter how vacant that echelon is, Yuri doesn't think it will be his turn to take the position. Ahead of him, there are Voznesensky and Kuznetsov. Although the Leningrad faction will certainly be hit from all sides after Zhdanov's death, that is a matter for the future after all. Now is not the time to show such a trend, right?
However, no matter how many doubts he had in his heart, Yuri had to obey orders now. After all, that was Comrade Stalin's arrangement.
There was not much time to think about the doubts in his heart. Yuri coughed lightly, quickened his pace, rushed to Comrade Bulganin, and joined the first row of the team. The person who filled his original position was Suslov.
The farewell procession passed through the heavily guarded Belorussky Railway Station Square and entered the relatively narrow streets. At this time, both sides of the street were full of people who came to see Comrade Zhdanov off. Everyone wore a black armband on their arms. The atmosphere was very depressing, and a sad atmosphere condensed over the entire city.
One thing that must be admitted is that despite the brutal power struggle in Moscow in recent years and the constant movement of various movements, in the minds of the Soviet people, national leaders like Zhdanov still have a high prestige.
In this sad atmosphere, the farewell procession moved forward slowly, and behind the carriage carrying the coffin, in the first row of national leaders, Yuri's presence was unusually eye-catching, mainly because compared with the people in the same row, he was too young.
"Yuri," any slight sound would stand out in the silent march. Therefore, when Bulganin beside him spoke, even though he spoke in a very low voice, Yuri heard it at the first moment.
Keeping his pace, Yuri turned his head slightly and glanced at Comrade Bulganin. Just now, the other party called him by his name, which was a way of showing closeness.
"Comrade Stalin ," Comrade Bulganin said without turning his head, as if he were talking to himself, "He hoped that I could talk to you about taking over the work of Comrade Andrei Andreevich and continuing to lead the movement against cosmopolitanism."
Andrei Andreevich naturally refers to Andreev.
Yuri was stunned for a moment, feeling a little heavy in his heart.
Andreyev had many previous jobs, but the most important one was his service in the Central Control Commission. He was the chairman of the Central Control Commission after Nikolai Ivanovich Yezhov.
How should I put it? After the outbreak of the war and in the early years after the war, the authority of the Central Supervisory Committee was weakened, and many of its powers were transferred to the State Security Committee. Earlier, this department was not a simple place. It was a repressive agency within the Bolshevik Party and played an extremely important role in the bloody movement.
In recent years, with the reorganization of the National Security Council, a series of powers have been divided. Especially with the development of the so-called "anti-globalism" movement, the power of the Central Supervisory Committee has been greatly strengthened.
The so-called "anti-cosmopolitanism" movement was actually a comprehensive anti-Westernization movement launched in the Soviet Union as relations between the Soviet Union and Western countries deteriorated. This movement was initiated by Comrade Zhdanov and was carried out in the ideological, scientific and cultural circles. Of course, it was also mixed with obvious anti-Semitism. The criticism of Molotov's wife was part of this movement.
"Wasn't it decided before that Comrade Matvey Fedorovich would be in charge of the overall work of the Supervisory Committee?" After a moment's silence, Yuri asked in a low voice.
Matvey Fedorovich refers to Shkiriatov (Matvey Fedorovich Shkiriatov, this person is very interesting, I can't find his information, I only know that he was born in 1883, participated in the Tula Revolution in 1906, joined the Central Supervisory Committee in 1923, died in 1954, and never left this place until his death. No one knows how he died. I checked it on the encyclopedia , and it said "the content is suspected of violating regulations"...), in the past few years, this person has been serving as the vice chairman of the Central Supervisory Committee, and is the second in command of this department.
Just a few months ago, the Central Committee decided that he would take over Andreyev's position as Chairman of the Central Control Commission, while the latter served as Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers.
"Comrade Stalin believes that Comrade Matvey Fyodorovich should be transferred to a more suitable post," Bulganin said, and after a moment's silence, he added, "especially when Comrade Malenkov returns to Moscow to resume his work."
Yuri suddenly realized that although Shkiriatov had a long tenure in the party, he had always been following Malenkov. Before, when the Central Committee made the decision to let him take over Andreyev's position, Zhdanov had not yet died, so this appointment was largely intended to restrict the Leningrad faction. Now that Zhdanov is dead, the Leningrad faction has suffered heavy losses, and its status and weight in the party have plummeted. Therefore, it is definitely not appropriate for such a person to serve as the chairman of the Central Supervisory Committee.
From this change in appointment, we can roughly see that Comrade Stalin was still trying to strike a balance. He did not want the Leningrad faction to continue to expand, but after the death of Comrade Zhdanov, he did not want the Leningrad faction to suffer too great a blow and wanted to limit Malenkov and Beria's counterattacks.
However, the real question Yuri was thinking about was why he was the one who replaced Shkiriatov? Was it because Comrade Stalin thought he was a member of the Leningrad group and thought he would sympathize with the Leningrad group, or was it because Comrade Stalin hoped that he would sympathize with the Leningrad group?
To be honest, Yuri really doesn't want to take the position of Chairman of the Central Supervisory Committee. Even though this position has great power and can even be said to control the life and death of many people, this is precisely the most direct reason why he is unwilling to go.
The reality today is that the Central Supervisory Committee is responsible for the supervision of the party, and the main targets of struggle are the Bolshevik Party members. Due to the reorganization of the State Security Committee, even if the State Security Committee wants to move someone, it needs the approval of the Supervisory Committee. To put it simply, the current case handling process is like this: the State Security Committee first determines who has problems, and then submits the case files to the Supervisory Committee. The Supervisory Committee forms a case investigation team to participate in the evidence collection work of the State Security Committee. Finally, the Supervisory Committee makes a decision based on the results of the evidence collection. As for the specific handling process, it is the responsibility of the State Security Committee.
It can be seen from this process that the Central Supervisory Committee is actually a tight hoop around the State Security Committee, and at the same time a guillotine hanging over the heads of all Bolshevik Party members.
If it were a peaceful time, Yuri wouldn't mind accepting this position, but now is obviously not a peaceful time, but a time of various struggles.
Let alone other things, the "anti-cosmopolitan" movement alone involved countless people. Molotov and Kosygin, the two bigwigs, could not escape and were chased and beaten by the Central Control Committee. Andreyev, the chairman of the committee, was a good man and did not want to participate in such a cruel struggle. He allowed Zhdanov to dictate his work all day long.
Actions like Andreyev's lost face, which was a small matter. The key point was that his inaction aroused Comrade Stalin's dissatisfaction, and it was for this reason that he was removed from the position of chairman.
It is conceivable that if I take over the position of chairman, there will be no shortage of troubles in the future.
What position should I take on the struggle among intellectuals? What position should I take on the anti-Westernization of the cultural, academic and scientific circles? If I sympathize with those intellectuals and scientists, I will inevitably arouse the dissatisfaction of Comrade Stalin. On the contrary, if I inherit Zhdanov's attitude, I will inevitably receive a lot of infamy in the future - Lysenko's lesson is not far away, and that is a lesson for us.
Furthermore, in the struggle between Malenkov, Beria and the Leningrad faction, how should he stand? If he stood on the side of the Leningrad faction, he would inevitably be retaliated by Malenkov's faction. If he stood on the side of Malenkov and his people, he would inevitably be liquidated in the future, and he might not even have to wait until the future, as he would not be able to get past Comrade Stalin.
Therefore, the position of Chairman of the Central Supervisory Committee seems to be a ripe red apple, but in fact it is a poisonous fruit.
