Cannon Fire Arc

Chapter 779: Chapter 32: The Other Side of War (6K)_2

Quartermaster waved his big hand as he got hold of the soap: “Alright, hurry up and go take a bath.”

The girls excitedly gathered up the utensils, rinsed them off, and then lined up to walk towards the river.

Along the way, girls from other units joined the transport team, and what was originally around a hundred support battalion troops suddenly swelled, becoming unwieldy. A defense observer would likely have sounded a sharp alarm at the sight.

So many people crammed together, still in a single-file formation, a sweeping barrage would mean certain death or injury.

Passing by the laundry team, Aksinya saw an elderly aunt still busy at the wooden barrel.

She whispered to the laundry team, “Why not let the aunt rest?”

“We told her she could rest! But she insisted on washing the last bucket of clothes. She has the longest monthly work hours in the factory! For two years, no one has worked harder than her. And—she seems to have been with the laundry team since the Loktov era.”

Natalia’s words made everyone in the laundry team look towards the old lady—Big Sister.

Someone whispered softly, “I heard her entire family died except for her. While the war is not yet over, she can still do the laundry for the warriors, having something to cling to, thinking about the soldiers wearing the clothes she washed to fight the enemy. What will she do after the war!”

The girls looked at Big Sister.

Big Sister, perhaps sensing something, looked up at them and then continued washing her clothes, like a tireless humanoid washing machine.

Aksinya felt a heavy sorrow accumulating in her throat.

————

At the same time, Wang Zhong was waiting at the entrance of the Kazarlia Front Army Headquarters for today’s distinguished guest.

Due to the smooth progress, he had more spare time to undertake “propaganda tasks.”

A convoy of three Jeeps drove into the Headquarters, and from a distance, one could see a white-haired head in the middle vehicle.

Wang Zhong stepped forward, and as soon as the Jeep stabilized, he shook hands with Alekseyevna.

“Ma’am, you look well. How about your son?”

“He has already started at the school, said getting there early to train recruits might help more of them survive,” the old woman replied.

Wang Zhong said, “That’s good, then you can consider me your son, and this is my wife Ludmila.”

Ludmila stepped forward and hugged the old lady: “I was also there in that battle, saved by your son.”

The old lady said, “It was tank number 422 commanded by the Marshal that saved you, my son was just a gunner.”

Wang Zhong said, “We are one entity, let’s go.”

————

Pavlov saw the convoy leaving from the window, then brought the cup in his hand to his lips, taking a large sip of coffee.

Popov said, “I heard an interesting piece of news today at the Federation envoy, there’s a general there also specialized in propaganda tasks, doesn’t smoke but bought a corn cob pipe for his image.”

Pavlov said, “I’ve heard about it too. This general spends his days giving interviews for newspapers and does nothing else; his headquarters has been in Ausletria for over two years and hasn’t even launched a proper landing, while the critical battle of Gwadar Canal was fought by the Marine Corps.”

As soon as Pavlov finished, a staff officer interjected, “That general’s troops did fight two battles; one in New Guinea, battling the Empire of Fusang’s troops in the dense jungles. The other one… I seem to have forgotten.”

“Thanks for the supplement. Don’t supplement next time, focus on your own work,” Pavlov said, “Vasily may seem careless, but he actually completes all his tasks before lounging around.”

“I came to report,” the staff member handed over the document to Pavlov.

Pavlov glanced at the document envelope’s cover, his expression turned grave, he skillfully untied the string and took out the document.

Popov asked, “What is it?”

Pavlov replied, “It’s about Yegorov and his wife and children, plus Doctor Kaja’s husband and children.”

Popov said, “Shouldn’t I be the one to receive it? I am the Military Bishop after all!”

Pavlov retorted, “I asked for a little favor due to old connections. The Church is busy restoring order in the occupied areas, right? After all, we have just reclaimed such a vast occupied area and many large cities.”

Popov agreed, “You are right, but helping find the families of heroic commanders under the Marshal wouldn’t distract us from our other duties. The Church is more capable than you think, Comrade Pavlov. So what are the results?”

Pavlov’s lips twitched, “The outcome… I’m not sure. Both of their spouses and children should be dead, there’s conclusive eyewitness evidence. Especially Kaja’s husband, he has a casualty record, but it was too chaotic, and the father’s name got lost, so they didn’t confirm it was him right away.

“Yegorov’s wife and children are a bit more complicated, but now her wedding ring has been recovered with an inscription inside.”

Popov asked, “So there’s a chance the children are still alive?”

Pavlov replied, “Even if they are alive, Yegorov still has reasons to marry Doctor Kaja.”

Popov clapped his hands, “Great! But before that, we need to return the_ring to Yegorov. Will you do it?”

Pavlov shook his head, “No, no, I had a friction with him when we were in the same battalion; he felt that I, a noble, looked down on him, a peasant! It’s obviously not appropriate for me to return it!”

“But this is the second highest military officer!”

“That’s clearly a propaganda task, it should be done by you clergymen!”

The two stood their ground for a while, then gave up together: “Forget it, let Marshal Rocossov do it.”