Chapter 76: Change of Thinking
After sitting in the front seat and calming down a little, Yuri finally had the chance to check the surrounding situation.
At this time, a few people were already sitting sparsely on the first floor of the theater. Perhaps because of the nature of the event, almost all of those present were young people in their 20s. Many of them were wearing military uniforms, but at a glance, there seemed to be no officers above the rank of colonel, and the majority were lieutenant-level officers.
In addition to the people who were seated, there were some reporters around who were debugging equipment. They would probably take photos and so on for future publicity.
The nature of the Leninist Komsomol is the reserve organization of the Bolshevik Party. Generally speaking, the cadres of the Leninist Komsomol are promoted relatively quickly, but it also depends on their abilities, and this ability often needs to be reflected in organizing various activities.
For example, tonight's blind date-like event is of great significance if you think deeply about it, especially as it coincides with the critical moment when the German army is about to attack Moscow. It can help to stabilize the morale of the army and the people, and show the optimistic spirit of the Communist Youth League members who are not afraid of war.
After sitting on the bench for a while, Yuri's flustered mood finally settled down. After careful consideration, he decided not to escape anymore, not to mention that he couldn't escape. Isn't it just to plant a nail next to him? Since he couldn't avoid it, he might as well go head-on. If Su Ya really appeared here tonight, he might as well go up to her and actively pursue her - at least he knew she was a nail, which was very beneficial to him.
Having made up his mind, Yuri was no longer in a hurry. Seeing that there were not many people sitting down on the first floor, he estimated that there was still some time before the show officially started. So he stood up from his chair, walked to the side door on the east side, pushed it open and walked out.
Outside the door was an open-air corridor with some dead vines winding around it. It looked like a very secluded place.
Yuri stopped under the canopy and fished out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket . Just as he was about to take one out, he heard someone say, "Can you give me one?"
Looking back in shock, Yuri suddenly discovered that there was someone else in the place, and it was a tall, slightly thin woman. The woman was hiding in the corner of the corridor, with her back against the wall, and no one knew what she was doing.
"Oh, of course," Yuri turned around, took two steps towards the woman, and handed her the cigarette he had just taken out.
"Thank you," the woman took the cigarette and held it between two slender white fingers, her two light blue eyes fixed on Yuri's face.
"I seem to know you," the woman stared at Yuri for a while and suddenly said, "I seem to have seen you somewhere."
"Maybe," Yuri smiled and said noncommittally, then took out a lighter and lit the cigarette for the woman.
"I remember now, you are Yuri Arkhipovich..." The woman did not come over to light a cigarette. She tilted her head and looked at Yuri and suddenly said.
It seemed that she recognized Yuri, but forgot his last name, so she smiled awkwardly and said, "I saw your photo in the newspaper before. By the way, I'm Gerlyosha, nice to meet you."
After she finished speaking, she leaned her head forward and lit the cigarette with the lighter in Yuri's hand.
When Gerlyosha leaned over to light a cigarette, Yuri glanced at her casually and happened to see the fair neck hidden under her collar. He was a little surprised to find that there was a scar on the back of her neck, a very faint one, like a knife wound, but because it was a long time ago, there was only a not very obvious red mark left.
Out of curiosity, Yuri looked at the other person's face carefully again, and then he found that this woman named Gerlyosha was actually very beautiful. Well, not the gorgeous type, but the pure and elegant type. Her appearance, coupled with her thin face, actually gave her a very unique charm.
"Are you here to attend the event?" Gerlyosha took a puff of cigarette. The light blue smoke floated out from her slightly thin lips, giving people a very decadent feeling.
"Yes," Yuri shrugged and said helplessly, "What about you? Are you here to participate in the event as well?"
"I work here," Gerlyosha shook her head, then raised her hand to show Yuri the ring on her hand.
The ring is obviously made of brass and is definitely not valuable, but it is a symbol of marriage after all.
"Oh, sorry," Yuri apologized quickly.
"It's okay," Gerlyosha smiled. For some reason, Yuri felt that even when she was smiling, there was still a thick haze between her delicate brows.
After that, the two seemed to have nothing to say to each other. Yuri took two steps back, lit a cigarette for himself, and turned his head to look outside the corridor. The drizzle was still falling, and under the reflection of the lights, the rain curtain in the night had a somewhat psychedelic color.
"The situation in Leningrad is very bad, isn't it?" After nearly two or three minutes, Geryosha suddenly spoke again, and she whispered behind Yuri.
Yuri turned around and looked at her in surprise. He didn't understand why a woman cared about these things. In addition, it was difficult to hear accurate news about the Leningrad War in Moscow. The news published in newspapers and broadcast on the radio were all about how the brave Leningrad soldiers and civilians, under the leadership of the Bolshevik Party, repelled the German army's attacks so many times and caused so many casualties to the German army. As for other news, there was nothing.
"I'm from Leningrad," Gerlyosha continued. "My husband's family and I are all there. Last week, we were able to get calls from our family, but we haven't been able to get in touch with them recently."
Yuri was silent. He knew something about Leningrad. As Gerlyosha said, the situation there was very bad. Since the German army captured Schlusselburg on the southern shore of Lake Ladoga in mid-September, all reinforcements and supplies to Leningrad had been cut off. The Germans first cut off the telephone line connecting Leningrad to the outside world, but reconnected it in late September. It was obvious that this was intended to disrupt the hearts of the Soviet people. So under the decision of the People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs, the line was cut off again.
For now, Leningrad has begun to implement food rationing, but the most difficult time has not yet come, and the situation will only get worse in the future.
"Can we win this war?" Gerlyosha probably knew that she couldn't get anything from Yuri, so she changed the subject.
"Yes," Yuri replied, "Victory has been destined to belong to us since the day the war broke out."
"I hope so," Gerlyosha smiled grimly and threw away the cigarette butt in his hand, "I just don't know if my family will still be alive when victory comes."
After she finished speaking, she turned and left, leaving Yuri standing there in a daze - this woman, isn't she afraid that saying this will cause trouble?
However, apart from political factors, Gerlyosha's mentality is probably the true thinking of most ordinary people, especially those in the war zone. They know the horror of war, so they no longer care about winning or losing. The first thing they consider is to stay alive.
But war is never just a military contest, it is also a political confrontation. When war comes, everyone needs to take sides, either on one side or the other. Those who take sides successfully will be honored after the war, and even if they die, they will become heroes and martyrs. Those who fail to take sides will be punished, they will be traitors and spies, and even if they die, they will be cursed and even have their bodies dug up.
Yuri knew that he was not an ordinary person, he was a soldier. In this war, he had already stood in line, but the problem was that it was not enough for him to just stand in line that time, he had to choose a second time. From this point of view, he was even worse than an ordinary person.
In the foreseeable future, the now invincible Comrade Beria will have a life-and-death showdown with the still relatively unknown Comrade Khrushchev. Before that, Yuri knew who would have the last laugh, so he once tried to hold on to Comrade Khrushchev's thigh and let him take him flying.
Unfortunately, everything that happened later disrupted his plans. First, he was transferred from the Southwestern Front, away from Khrushchev's thigh. Then, he was recruited into the People's Commissariat of Internal Affairs and became a subordinate of Beria... This series of combined punches made Yuri further and further away from Comrade Khrushchev's thigh.
For this reason, Yuri even considered finding an opportunity to tell Khrushchev that he had been recruited into the People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs, but he soon realized that this practice of exchanging one's own shortcomings for others' trust was politically immature. Imagine, what if Khrushchev was timid and retreated after knowing it? What if he took advantage of the situation and used himself as a tool to deal with dissidents? Most importantly, what if Beria abandoned him when he was liquidated in the future? These are all problems.
The cigarette in his hand had burned out unknowingly, but Yuri's brows were getting deeper and deeper. He found that his thoughts had reached a dead end and there seemed to be no way out.
Since an idea has reached a dead end, just cut it off, change your position, and start again.
The awning in front of the corridor is made of canvas, with a groove hanging low at the corner. After the roof is full, the rainwater accumulated on the awning flows down the groove, dripping and forming a string of beads on the edge of the awning.
Yuri stared at the small puddle below the beads. In the puddle, half a broken leaf was spinning back and forth with the dripping water.
Looking at the swirling leaves, Yuri's eyes became brighter and brighter, his breathing became more and more rapid, and the hand holding the cigarette trembled frequently and faster.
Just now, in the brief moment when the lightning flashed, an idea flashed through his mind. The idea was so bold that he couldn't help but feel cold all over, and at the same time he was extremely excited.
