USSR 1941

  Chapter 176 Robbery

  The train sped forward, and the temperature dropped sharply after passing the narrow Caucasus mountain pass.

   It is said that the cold air blowing from Siberia is blocked by the Caucasus, so Crimea, located in the south of the Caucasus Mountains, is like spring all year round. (The average temperature in winter is 1 to 2 degrees)

   Shulka knew from the veteran that the train was bound for the northeast.

   This is the same as what Shulka guessed, the train could not go directly to Moscow... The reason is that at this time Moscow has been surrounded by the German army from the north, west, and south, and the only place that can freely enter and exit is the east.

  So, starting from Crimea, you have to make a big circle, first drive to Stalingrad and then enter Moscow from the east.

  The soldiers who are bored in the train will chat to relieve their boredom, or discuss the future battlefield and the difficulties they may face in the future. Some people even guess the location of the German army, and then imagine how the Soviet army will surround and annihilate the enemy.

   But the discussion dwindled after a few hours, because everyone actually knew a little bit...the information they knew was pitifully small, everything was based on speculation, and reality is often cruel.

  Trains often stop when they enter the station or at the transfer station.

This is not for carrying people. In fact, the goal of this train is very clear. Just distribute it.

  The stay is for train scheduling. The railway network here is obviously much more complicated than the railway from Kyiv to Odessa, so sometimes I have to wait for other trains to pass by.

   At this time, various transactions will be carried out on the platform: local people will take what they have, such as potatoes, eggs, cucumbers, etc., to the platform to exchange with passing soldiers.

  The items exchanged were items sent by the soldiers from home or from the troops: gloves, tobacco packets, needles and threads, pencils, etc.

What the people need most is clothes, because they depend on them for the winter, so the price is very cheap: a sweater for a large jar of pickles, clean foot wraps (things that Soviet soldiers wrapped around their feet as socks) for a bottle of milk , a homemade lighter can be exchanged for 10 potatoes.

Homemade lighters were very popular in the Soviet army. They called them bullet casing lighters because they were made of bullet casings...the bullet casing was used as the main body of the lighter, filled with a little gasoline and then stuffed with cotton, and welded on the side On a simple device with a roller and a flint, a lighter and you're done.

  Of course, this can only be done with the help of engineers, so engineers generally have good popularity in the army.

   People getting a lighter means they can save money on matches, and gasoline is everywhere around Crimea.

   Unfortunately, the soldiers' lighters and other equipment were confiscated in Odessa.

   Soon deceit and violence were used.

  At the beginning, Shulka didn't realize this. Occasionally, he saw a few old women on the platform standing there in disbelief, looking at the train going away, and some people had tears on their faces.

   Shulka didn't know what happened, he thought it was because of something else.

   But soon he knew that was not the case.

  The veteran stood up and stopped the Cossack and several of his subordinates.

   "Go away, Crimean!" The Cossack lowered his voice and said to the veteran: "Don't ask for trouble!"

   "People like you!" said the veteran, "will be run over like rats by the Crimeans!"

   "Don't bother!" The Cossack laughed: "We are all the same in Moscow!"

  The meaning of these words is obvious, and it may be one of the reasons for the Cossacks to do these disgraceful things... Going to Moscow is a disaster, why not enjoy it before then?

   What's more, even if I made a mistake, how can my superior punish me?

   Locked up?

  Shot?

   No, they need soldiers who can fight to defend Moscow!

   "What's going on?" Shulka asked, and this strange quarrel woke Shulka from his sleep.

   "Comrade company commander!" The veteran said, "They snatched their baggage from the old man on the platform!"

   "No, I traded two pairs of socks!" replied the Cossack.

   "Oh, is it?" Shulka said, "So can you unpack in front of everyone?"

   Shulka stood up as he said that, and the assistant instructor who had just come out of the toilet also noticed the situation here and walked up immediately.

  The Cossack was stunned for a moment, and glared at the veteran angrily. Under the gaze of Shulka, he could only slowly unpack the package with a fluke mentality...

  Inside are an embroidered towel, two pairs of gloves, a pair of socks and an undershirt.

   "You mean... you traded two pairs of socks for these things?" Shulka asked, then shook his head at the other unopened bundle: "There's even an unopened one?"

  The Cossack froze and didn't dare to speak. These obviously cannot be exchanged for two pairs of socks, and no one would exchange socks for socks.

   Shulka knocked the Cossack down with one blow.

   "If you continue to go your own way and disobey orders, Kuzia!" Shulka said to the Cossack: "Then get out of my army!"

"And you!" Shulka said to the Cossack subordinates: "Don't think that this is just the responsibility of the squad leader! Who are you? Soldiers defending the motherland or criminals? Do you know who you are stealing from? They The sons and husbands of my sons and husbands may have lived and died on the front line like us, think about your own mothers, think about your family members... How would you feel if you knew that they were treated the same in their hometown?!"

  Although the deputy instructor doesn't know the cause and effect, he can guess that it's almost the same when he sees this.

   This is when he should have said something, but he didn't.

The deputy instructor walked forward slowly and squatted down, and said to the Cossack who was lying on the ground wiping blood from the corner of his mouth: "Do you think I will send you to a military court or kick you out of the army like the company commander said? No, I have a better place..."

   "No, Comrade Deputy Instructor!" The Cossack looked terrified.

   "You are already on my reserve list!" The deputy instructor grabbed the Cossack by the collar: "If you have anything to dissatisfy Comrade Company Commander!"

   "Yes, Comrade Deputy Instructor!"

  The deputy instructor stood up satisfied at this moment, and then whispered to Shulka: "You shouldn't reason with the robbers, Comrade Company Commander. There are better ways to deal with them!"

  Shuerka looked confused.