Republic of China: Ace Pilot

Chapter 848 Moscow in Chaos, Nighttime Encounter with Stalin's Double

Moscow in late July.

A continuous drizzle enveloped the entire city.

As the German army advanced, the defenders of Smolensk were surrounded, and the panic of defeat spread like an invisible plague throughout Moscow.

Official newspapers continued to publish reports of victories, exaggerating the Red Army's heavy losses to Nazi armored groups and the frontline troops' successive repelling of the enemy, while deliberately downplaying the heavy losses on the battlefield.

However, the closed information barrier could not block all sources of information. The wounded retreating from the front lines, the soldiers retreating to the rear after the rout, and the civilians in the west who were urgently evacuated brought the most authentic war situation.

All sorts of rumors began to spread wildly in the streets, government offices, factories, and residential areas.

Some say that the German vanguard armored forces are less than 300 kilometers from Moscow and could break through the defenses and rush straight to the capital at any time;

There are rumors circulating privately that the top leadership has already drafted an evacuation plan, and the Kremlin will be moved to Kuibyshev;

Even worse, some spread pessimistic views, claiming that the Western Front had collapsed and that the Soviet Union was simply powerless to resist the Nazi armored onslaught.

Private discussions about making peace and surrendering quietly began to emerge.

With public sentiment in turmoil, chaos ensued within the city.

Some mid-level officials secretly sold off assets, hoarded food and daily necessities, and tried every means to use connections to transfer to other positions and escape Moscow, the epicenter of the storm.

Ordinary citizens are gripped by collective anxiety, with long queues forming day and night in front of bakeries and grocery stores as people rush to buy rice, flour, canned goods, and salt, highlighting the growing shortage of essential supplies.

In response, the Ministry of the Interior (NKVD) launched a citywide surveillance operation to arrest "wavering elements," creating an extremely tense atmosphere in the rear.

Subsequently, in order to safeguard industrial capacity, the Soviet Union launched an eastward relocation of its industries.

The National Defense Commission officially issued the evacuation order, initiating an unprecedented industrial relocation in the history of human warfare.

All military industrial enterprises and heavy industrial factories located in the high-risk western war zone must dismantle all equipment and relocate, along with their skilled workers and supporting materials, to the Urals, Siberia, and the heart of Central Asia.

The workers are working overtime to dismantle heavy lathes, stamping machines, and military production lines.

Countless pieces of heavy equipment were secured with ropes and loaded onto freight trains and flatbed trucks.

The shortage of transport capacity triggered numerous conflicts, with military factories and civilian enterprises vying for wagons and fuel, resulting in constant disputes. Some factories even bribed dispatchers to secure priority evacuation slots. Despite the strict wartime control system, chaos could not be eradicated.

Despite this situation, Fang Wen was not significantly affected.

Fang Wen, who worked at a military factory near Moscow, was not involved in this eastward relocation because his unit was top-secret.

Today, as a foreign expert, he is highly valued within the Soviet military-industrial complex.

The airburst bombs he oversaw the production of have been put into mass production and transported to the front lines in batches. In addition, at the special invitation of the Soviet Army's rocket artillery high command, Fang Wen participated in the optimization project of new air-to-ground rockets.

With the cooperation agreement between Diejia Taishan Radio Branch Factory and Fang Wen about to be finalized, Fang Wen has become an indispensable foreign expert in the eyes of the Soviet high command.

To demonstrate the importance attached to him, the military not only upgraded Fang Wen's material rations, providing him with scarce meat, canned goods, and high-quality fuel, but also assigned him a dedicated security guard.

He was a young Soviet soldier named Vasya, only twenty years old. He came from a working-class family in Moscow, was taciturn, had excellent marksmanship, and had received special security training from the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

From dawn till dusk, Vasya stayed by Fang Wen's side at all times, ensuring his personal safety.

The generous treatment did not make Fang Wen happy.

The technical team dispatched by Taishan Military Industry to the Soviet Union to be responsible for building a factory and debugging and assembling the production line has already departed from the northern Myanmar base and will arrive in Lahu soon.

The components for his custom-made cyclotron particle accelerator were mostly completed, but they were piling up in Soviet military warehouses and could not be shipped out for a long time.

The key issue was that his request to personally pilot the Li-2 transport plane was never approved by the Soviet high command.

Therefore, Fang Wen sought out Ivan again.

"Ivan, what's the result of my application to fly the Li-2 transport plane between Lanzhou and Moscow?"

Ivan stammered, "I've already reported it. We should have news soon, just wait a little longer."

One day, two days, three days passed, and time went by, but there was still no news of approval.

Ivan repeatedly inquired with his superiors, but the response he always received was, "Under review, awaiting further notice."

The unusual delay intensified Fang Wen's unease.

Before he could figure out the reasons, a new round of changes suddenly occurred.

All military factories near Moscow received emergency orders to be included in the wartime relocation list and to immediately begin dismantling, packing, and transporting operations.

This included the airburst bomb factory where Fang Wen worked.

The roar of the machines disappeared, and the once orderly factory area descended into chaos.

The workers were divided into two groups: one group was responsible for dismantling production equipment, packing and registering it; the other group organized raw materials and semi-finished products, waiting for dispatch and departure at any time.

The entire factory area was in a state of panic, and no one knew which small town in the Urals they would eventually be relocated to.

The arrangements for Fang Wen also suddenly changed.

That evening, several soldiers dressed in Ministry of Internal Affairs uniforms entered the factory area and took direct control of all entrances and exits around Fang Wen's dormitory.

Vasya, the original full-time security guard, suddenly disappeared.

Fang Wen tried to go out, but was stopped by soldiers outside the door.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Fang, you can't go out for the time being. We will take care of your safety. You can tell us what you would like to eat."

Fang Wen coldly stared at the Soviet soldiers outside the door, then closed it without saying a word.

He realized that he had been effectively placed under house arrest.

He then pressed the button on the belt head to activate his mechanical perception ability, using the X-ray vision of the Vertical Eye Gem to explore the surrounding area.

The mechanical sensory field of vision penetrated the wall and looked at the other expert buildings.

He discovered that not only himself, but all senior technicians in the factory were subject to the same level of control.

Fang Wen couldn't help but wonder: was this situation to facilitate the smooth transition of senior technical personnel to the rear? Or was a drastic, unseen upheaval taking place within the Soviet high command?

The situation is rapidly deteriorating and spiraling out of control.

Fang Wen is currently unsure how to deal with the situation.

He wanted to leave, and those Soviet soldiers absolutely couldn't stop him, but if they did, everything he had done in the Soviet Union would have been for nothing.

But at this moment, another matter forced him to find a way to deal with it.

It was late at night.

Only two Soviet soldiers were guarding outside; the others had gone to rest.

Fang Wen took out the telegraph machine that Ivan had obtained, tuned it to the designated frequency, and a series of electrical sounds entered his headphones.

He quickly wrote down the Morse code and deciphered it in his mind.

The contents of the telegram made his heart sink.

Taishan Airlines headquarters sent an urgent telegram:

The Japanese army abandoned its gradual offensive strategy of using French Indochina as a springboard and directly dispatched a combined land and sea force to land in the Kingdom of Sarawak, forcibly occupying the entire territory and confiscating all of Shell's oil exploration bases, refineries, and storage warehouses.

Despite the US oil embargo, the Japanese invaders finally embarked on the path of conquering Southeast Asian oil and gas resources.

Fang Wen understood that the Japanese army would most likely move south and seize control of the Malay Peninsula and the Dutch East Indies next.

This is a great opportunity. Given the relationship between Taishan and the Kingdom of Sarawak, it would be perfectly reasonable to send troops to help resist the Japanese invasion.

This would also allow them to easily gain access to European resources in Southeast Asia.

It is absolutely necessary for me to go back and preside over the event.

Thinking about this, Fang Wen felt even more eager to return to China.

He opened the door.

He said to the Soviet soldiers outside, "I want to see Ivan."

"I will report the facts truthfully, please wait patiently," the soldier replied.

"Also, bring me dinner today." Fang Wen closed the door.

An hour later, a tired-looking Ivan arrived at Fang Wen's door.

He knocked on the door, and Fang Wen, who was having dinner, opened it and let him in.

After closing the door, Fang Wen looked directly into Ivan's eyes:

“Ivan, tell me the truth. What exactly is happening in Moscow lately? Why is my flight application still pending approval? Why have I been deprived of even the right to freely enter and leave the factory area? And what exactly do you higher-ups intend to do with me?”

Ivan hesitated, but finally spoke up: "Some people are bringing up the Brest-Litovsk peace treaty again, which is absolutely unacceptable and must be dealt with seriously." "What do you mean? I don't quite understand," Fang Wen asked, puzzled.

As a Chinese, his understanding of the situation in the Soviet Union was still insufficient.

Fang Wencai understood after Ivan explained.

He didn't want to get involved.

"Then what about my situation? I'm a foreign expert and this has absolutely nothing to do with me."

Ivan replied, “I understand, but the NKVD doesn’t. They think you’ve made a great contribution to our war and shouldn’t leave the Soviet Union.”

So that's how it is; I was just dragged into it.

Fang Wen sneered: "What if I don't cooperate? Do you think you can force me to cooperate with you in establishing a wireless equipment manufacturing plant through house arrest and coercion?"

Ivan said awkwardly, "I know it's wrong to do this, but the Ministry of Internal Affairs is in charge in Moscow now."

"No, there is someone who has more authority than the Ministry of the Interior."

Fang Wen recalled the Stalin he had met that day.

Ivan understood who Fang was referring to, but he advised, "You won't see him. In all of Moscow, except for a very few people, no one can get close to him."

“I’d like to give it a try,” Fang Wen replied.

“Fang, you can’t do it,” Ivan advised.

"Did you drive here?" Fang Wen asked abruptly.

“Ah, yes,” Ivan replied, bewildered.

"I'm sorry." Fang Wen suddenly raised his hand and used the technique that Gong Xiuneng had taught him to subdue enemies to press on Ivan's pressure point that had caused him to faint.

In an instant, Ivan lost consciousness.

Fang Wen held the unconscious Ivan and placed him on the bed.

Then he began to disguise himself in Ivan's appearance.

Yellow hair was glued to his face, then he put on a hat and changed out of Ivan's military uniform.

With such attire, and given that it was nighttime, plus the fact that the two were of similar build, it was not easy to tell them apart without careful observation.

Then, Fang Wen covered Ivan with the blanket.

Wearing the other person's uniform and big leather shoes, he walked out of the room.

Outside the room, two Soviet soldiers stood ramrod straight.

"Protect him well," Fang Wen said, mimicking Ivan's voice.

"Yes, sir!" the two soldiers shouted back.

Fang Wen didn't say anything more, and walked down the corridor with his back to the two soldiers.

Fang Wen left his residence and went downstairs to look for where Ivan's car was parked.

He found it quickly, walked straight over, and got into the car.

The car started and drove toward the factory gate.

There were guards there, and Fang Wen subconsciously leaned back, hiding his face in the darkness.

The car pulled up at the gate, and he raised the special pass in his hand.

The guards didn't do any special checks; after looking at the pass, they simply waved, and the factory gates opened.

The car drove out of the factory and headed towards Moscow.

At this moment, Fang Wendu was surprised by his own bold and reckless behavior.

He could have chosen a safer approach, but this time he opted for something more exciting.

Perhaps due to years of aerial combat and exploration, he has become a person full of adventurous spirit at heart.

But how do they meet Stalin next?

He had no clue what to do.

The car drove on, and forty minutes later, it entered the city of Moscow.

Although the city is now militarized, military discipline along the way is not strict.

Along the way, Fang Wen could see many soldiers drinking.

This was a strange wartime measure in Moscow: soldiers were given vodka rations to keep warm and to soothe their wartime emotions.

The car continued on its way, and as it approached Red Square, a checkpoint appeared.

It was here that Fang Wencai encountered his first examination.

The officer stopped the car: "Please show your identification."

Fang Wen, who had already taken off Ivan's military uniform, took out his identification.

After receiving the identification, the officer looked at the photo on the document and then at Fang Wen's face. The top-secret stamp on the document made him afraid to ask any questions.

He then returned the documents and asked, "Where are you going?"

“The Kremlin,” Fang Wen replied.

Upon hearing this, the officer immediately saluted and said, "I'm sorry, I didn't know."

"It's alright, you're just doing your job," Fang Wen replied, starting the car and continuing to drive forward.

The car drove onto the road leading to Red Square.

Fang Wen had no clue how to meet Stalin.

He slowed down the car to give himself some time.

The car moved slowly along the street leading to Red Square.

As we approached Red Square, the Kremlin came into view in the distance.

Fang Wen turned the steering wheel to the right and drove into another lane.

He felt a little apprehensive; it was too reckless of him to drive into Red Square like that.

The car stopped outside a store because there were other cars parked there.

It was a bar, one of the few bars in Moscow these days.

Fang Wen's heart skipped a beat, and he got out of the car and headed towards the bar.

He pushed open the door.

The smell of perfume and alcohol wafted out.

Well-dressed men and women sat around a square table, drinking and talking.

Fang Wen's Eastern features are rarely seen here, and many people looked at him.

Ignoring the stares, Fang Wen walked forward, intending to find a seat, but saw a man wearing a hat that covered his face in a corner not far away.

The man was alone, with a large bottle of liquor in front of him and a cigarette in his hand.

The other person took a deep drag on their cigarette and exhaled the smoke.

The familiar smell of cigarettes reminded Fang Wen of someone.

That day, when he went to see Commander-in-Chief Stalin at the Air Force Headquarters, he smelled this same cigarette smoke in the conference room.

It seemed that he had never smelled this special tobacco scent on another Soviet person.

However, that person was probably Stalin's double.

A double isn't bad either; perhaps I can achieve my goal of getting out here through him.

Thinking of this, Fang Wen smiled and took the initiative to sit down opposite the other person. (End of this chapter)