Chapter 1549

On the day before the battle of Belarus, konev, who was busy deploying troops, unexpectedly received a call from Moscow. Stalin called in person. After a few simple greetings with konev, he suddenly asked, "Comrade konev, what's the situation there? Is there any news from the Germans?"

"Comrade Stalin," konev replied with a smile, "the Germans may have thought that our active direction would be in Ukraine, so the enemy is frequently mobilizing forces on the opposite side of our defensive positions."

"This is a good thing. As long as the enemy makes a wrong judgment, the offensive campaign we are about to launch will have an unexpected effect." After Stalin finished this sentence, he suddenly changed the topic and asked, "Comrade konev, I remember you listen to people who like watching football matches. Are you interested in watching a football match today?"

When he heard Stalin say this, konev was stunned. Then he euphemistically said, "Comrade Stalin, there is less than a month left to launch an offensive campaign. I have a lot of work to do every day. I really can't leave."

As for konev's evasion, it seems that Stalin had expected it for a long time. He waited for konev to finish, and said without hesitation: "not only do you want to watch this football match, but also rokosovsky and bagramian will attend. Do you understand what I mean?"

Konev held the phone for a moment, and his face was suddenly enlightened: "I understand, comrade Stalin, I understand everything. You asked us to watch the football match to create an illusion for the German army, that is, our army will not have any large-scale military operations in the near future, otherwise the commanders of several fronts will never leave their posts without permission. "

"Yes, that's how I think about it." Stalin replied slowly.

"I don't know where the football match will be held today?" Konev asked tentatively, "is it in the stadium in Moscow?"

"No, the football match is not in Moscow, but in Kiev. To celebrate the completion of the reconstruction of the Khrushchev Republic stadium in Kiev. " Stalin said to konev, "Comrade Khrushchev has organized a football match. Please go and support him, commanders of all fronts."

After knowing Stalin's intention to let him go to watch the football match, konev asked: "Comrade Stalin, the offensive campaign in Belarus will be officially launched tomorrow. Is it suitable for them to go to Kiev to watch the football match at this time?"

"Don't worry, comrade konev. I've already arranged what you're worried about." Stalin confidently said: "although several commanders of the front army have gathered in Kiev to watch the football match organized by Khrushchev, now vasilevsky is in the front army along the Baltic Sea and Zhukov is in the front army of Belarus. They are both in charge. There will be no mistakes in the preparation of the team."

"Well, comrade Stalin." Seeing that Stalin had considered all the things that should be considered, konev had no psychological burden. He then said, "after I give Rita the command of the army, I will fly to Kiev."

"Comrade konev, you can hand over the command to sokolovsky. As for Rita, "Stalin said firmly," let her come with you to Kiev, understand? "

Konev turned to look at me and said with some embarrassment, "well, comrade Stalin, since you say so, I'll go to Kiev to watch the football match with Rita later."

"I asked you to take Rita to Kiev for a reason." Perhaps in order to dispel konev's doubts, Stalin specially explained: "she is the focus of German attention now. If the enemy spies find her in Kiev, they will have the illusion that we have no attack plan at present, otherwise it is impossible for a group of senior commanders to leave their troops, Go to a football match

"I see, comrade Stalin." Stalin's explanation made konev's face smile. "Lida is famous in Germany because of her military achievements. If the enemy sees her appearing in Kiev, they will think that commanders like her are on leave, so our army will not have any large-scale operations to confuse the enemy for the time being. "

After konev made a phone call, he called several of us in front of him, conveyed Stalin's instructions to us, and then said to sokolovsky: "Comrade chief of staff, we may stay in Kiev for a day or two. During my absence, the front army will be under your full command. If there is anything that can't be handled, You can call me in Kiev. "

"Don't worry, comrade marshal." Sokolovsky nodded his head and replied, "during your absence, I will urge the troops to continue their preparations."

After listening to sokolovsky's reply, konev nodded, waved his head at me and said, "Rita, let's go and try to get to Kiev earlier."

Two hours later, our plane landed at the military airport north of Kiev. When the plane taxied on the runway, I saw a transport plane on the apron next to it. As soon as I heard it, the ground crew of the airport pushed the gangway to get the people on the plane off the plane.

Seeing this situation, I quickly pointed to the outside and said to konev, "marshal, you see that plane has just landed. I don't know which front commander has arrived?"

Konev only glanced out of the porthole, then withdrew his eyes and said with disapproval: "I think it's either rokosovsky or bagramian. After all, today's commanders of all fronts are coming here to watch the game."

After we got off the plane, we met rokosowski who just got off the plane at the runway. Seeing us, he speeded up his pace and came over. He followed us all the way and called konev loudly: "Hello, marshal. I didn't expect you to come to Kiev, too."

Konev welcomed him with a smile, shaking hands with rokosovsky, and said with a smile: "Comrade rokosovsky, I think you are the same as me. You received the call from the Supreme Commander himself, and then immediately arrived in Kiev?"

"That's right, that's right." Rokosovsky replied with a smile: "I was ordered to watch the football match so as to give the enemy the illusion that they would not be aware of the attack we are about to launch."

The people sent by Khrushchev drove us to the malinski palace, where Khrushchev now works. After I got out of the car, I looked up at the rebuilt building and said that the work efficiency of Kiev was very high. In just over a year, they rebuilt the destroyed building here.

"What are you thinking, Rita?" May be to see me get off standing in a daze, rokosovsky also deliberately stopped, asked me with concern: "have you been here before?"

"Yes, Comrade General." I pointed to the building in front of me and said with a smile: "last year, when I commanded the troops to attack Kiev, I was once tenacious defended by the German army here. I ordered the artillery to destroy the building here. I didn't expect to complete the reconstruction work so soon."

"Come on, let's not sigh at the door." Konev, who had already stepped up the steps, saw me and rokosovsky standing beside the car chatting, and couldn't help urging: "Comrade Khrushchev is still waiting for us."

When we came to Khrushchev's resplendent office, I found that several other commanders of the front army, including bagramian, had been sitting around the table drinking tea and chatting.

Rokosovsky and konev quickly came forward, shook hands with Khrushchev and several other commanders of the front army, and exchanged a few simple greetings.

After all the passes that should be left were finished, konev turned to Khrushchev and asked, "Comrade Khrushchev, can you tell us something about your situation here before the ball game starts?"

I thought he would introduce some things about the reconstruction of Kiev. Unexpectedly, he talked directly about the stadium we are going to: "when we liberated Kiev on November 6, 1943, although neither the enemy nor US deliberately destroyed the stadium, when we occupied the city, we found that it had changed beyond recognition*** When the bandits retreated, they demolished the gates, walls, doors and windows of the stadium, and destroyed the water supply system and radio broadcasting system After half a year's rush work, we have finally repaired the stadium and are ready to reopen today. And the football match, which should have been held on the same day in 1941, will be held today. "

I thought of a post I had seen on the Internet. After he finished, he carefully asked, "Comrade Khrushchev, I want to ask, in that year's competition, you once sold 50000 tickets. I don't know whether these tickets can be used in today's competition?"

"Is that true? The tickets sold in those years are still valid today. " When Khrushchev finished this sentence, he couldn't help sighing: "although we issued a notice as early as two months ago, saying that the tickets sold in that year are still limited today, the premise is that we must register in advance..."

"Comrade Khrushchev, can you tell me how many people have come to register?" When konev heard this, he couldn't help asking curiously.

"Very few people." Khrushchev shook his head and said: "in those years, 50000 tickets were sold, but less than 50 people came to register; As for the 22 players of the two teams in those years, only two can play today

"Alas, in order to defend our great motherland, we have made great sacrifices in this war." When rokosovsky heard Khrushchev say this, he said with some regret: "however, as long as we can defeat the aggressors, no matter how much we pay, it is worth it."

As soon as I waited for rokosovsky to finish speaking, I immediately said, "Comrade Khrushchev, although the number of people who came to register is very small, it does not mean that the audience who bought tickets will not be alive."

"Oh?" When Khrushchev heard me say this, he couldn't help saying curiously, "Rita, do you mean that the audience who bought tickets in those days absolutely survived more than a few dozen people?"

"Yes, comrade Khrushchev." I nodded my head and said with certainty: "the audience who bought tickets in those years, except those who have died. Some of the living people have been evacuated to the rear, because the war is not over and they can not return to their homes for the time being; Some people are now fighting in the army and have no time to attend such a football event. For example, my military commissar Comrade kirilov is like this. I saw with my own eyes that he had an orange red ticket in his hand. "

"Rita has a point." As soon as I finished, konev added: "some people, although they are in Kiev now, lost the tickets they bought in those days for some reason, so they can't come to register." After we chatted for a while, Khrushchev raised his hand and looked at his watch. Then he politely said to us, "Dear commanders, the ball game is going on at two o'clock in the afternoon. Let's go now."“ Comrade Khrushchev, I have a question. " Just as everyone got up to leave, general Malinowski, the commander of the second front army of Ukraine, who had not spoken for a long time, asked, "generally, the ball game is played in the evening. Why do you arrange the ball game in the afternoon?" When he heard Malinowski's question, Khrushchev replied with a smile: "senior general, the commander of the supreme command will call the commanders of all your fronts here to watch the first ball game after the reopening of the stadium. The purpose is to confuse the enemy and make them not aware of our attack intention. The battle of Belarus will be launched tomorrow. After watching the game, all the commanders must rush back to their respective troops immediately to arrange the attack. If the game is played in the evening, you will certainly have a negative impact on tomorrow's fight“ Well, you make a lot of sense, "said Malinowski, shaking his head and cooperating with Khrushchev." comrades, it's getting late. We'd better get to the stadium as soon as possible. " Half an hour later, we arrived at the stadium. At this time, the stadium was already full of people, and the football players were warming up in the stadium. Seeing us coming, the noisy stadium became quiet immediately. Khrushchev went to the microphone, looked around, and then said aloud, "first of all, comrades, I welcome you here to watch the first football match after the reconstruction of the stadium." After the cheers stopped, he said, "before the game starts, please stand up for three minutes of silence for those who died in the war to defend our great motherland!" At the end of the three minute silence, Khrushchev said a few more words about the scene, and then announced in a loud voice: "the game begins!"