"An industrial spy?" After Stalin waited for Rokossovsky to finish speaking, he said disappreciatively: "What important information can he have?" ”

"Comrade Stalin, it is like this, in the German agency where this industrial spy worked, a flying machine called the 'Belonze Disc' was developed." Rokossovsky was afraid that Stalin would not be interested in this matter, and hurriedly said: "So far, only three model aircraft have been developed for this kind of flying machine. In the test flight in February, the No. 3 model aircraft rose to an altitude of 15,000 meters in just three minutes, and the level flight speed reached 2,200 kilometers per hour. At the same time, the aircraft can also hover in the air, and can fly forward or backward at will without turning. ”

Rokossovsky's words finally aroused Stalin's great interest: "What, can the speed reach 2200 kilometers per hour? You must know that our current most advanced Yak-3 fighter has a speed of only 655 kilometers per hour. That is, in the event of an air battle, our fighters simply cannot catch up with each other? ”

"Exactly." Rokossovsky replied: "The Belonse disc is three times faster than the speed of our most advanced Yak-3 fighter. In the event of an air battle between the two sides, our planes will not even have a chance to leave the battlefield. ”

"Then do you know where the three model machines developed by the Germans are now?"

"Yes, Comrade Stalin, I know."

"Do you know the location?!" Stalin asked with some curiosity: "In what place?" ”

"In the manufacturing plant in Breslau!"

"In the manufacturing plant in the city of Breslau?!"

"Yes!"

When Stalin heard this, he took out two cigarettes from the cigarette case, crushed them, stuffed them into the cigarette butts, lit them, and asked slowly: "Comrade Rokossovsky, is this information reliable?" ”

"Completely reliable, Comrade Stalin." Since the city of Breslau was in the area of attack of the 1st Belorussian Front, Rokossovsky had to get Stalin's permission to send people there, so that he could persuade Zhukov to allow his troops to enter that area. "But it's Marshal Zhukov's territory, and if we want to take any action, we need your consent first."

"Since that aircraft factory is on the territory of the 1st Belorussian Front," Stalin said thoughtfully, "then wouldn't it be more convenient for Zhukov to send troops directly to seize the model?" ”

Stalin's idea sounded very reasonable, the aircraft factory was in the area controlled by Zhukov, and Rokossovsky's troops were thousands of miles away in East Pomerania, and whose troops were sent to seize the enemy's model aircraft, the answer is obvious.

But Rokossovsky didn't think so in his heart, if it was something else in Zhukov's territory, he could ignore it, and the manufacturing plant in Breslau had a model machine that could change the history of world aviation, and the nature was different. Moreover, these only three model machines were destroyed by the Germans in the manufacturing plant after the fall of Berlin, so that whether such a thing really existed has become a topic of endless debate among experts in later generations.

It is precisely on the basis of this consideration that Rokossovsky naturally cannot give away the great credit that is about to be handed over. Moreover, he always remembered in his heart that if he had not been of Polish blood, then the person who commanded the troops of the First Front to march to Berlin at this moment should have been himself, not Zhukov, and he would not have fought farther and farther away from Berlin.

"Comrade Stalin," Rokossovsky said solemnly, "at present only a limited number of people know about the model machine, and if Marshal Zhukov had been informed, many more people would have known about it, and then there would have been a possibility of leakage." Once the Germans knew that we were going to send someone to seize the model machine, it would be an incalculable loss for us to jump over the wall and destroy the model machine, or give it to another country. ”

If Rokossovsky had only said that the Germans, having learned the news, were likely to destroy the model machine, perhaps Stalin would have disagreed. However, it was immediately mentioned that these model aircraft might fall into the hands of other countries, but it made Stalin's heart inexplicably panic, if other countries really obtained this kind of model aircraft, after further improving their performance, they would enter large-scale production to install their air forces, which would mean that their air forces would completely lose air supremacy, which he could not tolerate.

However, to entrust such a difficult task to Rokossovsky's men, Stalin could not make up his mind for the time being. Just when he was in a dilemma, he heard someone knocking on the door, and when he looked up, he saw Boskolebeshev standing in the half-open doorway, and said respectfully: "Comrade Beria is here, saying that there is an urgent matter to see you!" ”

"Let him in." After Stalin waited for the figure of Poskorebeshev to disappear from the door, he said into the microphone: "Comrade Rokossovsky, Beria is here, wait for me to talk to him, and then tell you the final answer." ”

When Stalin put down the phone, Beria, dressed in civilian military clothes, happened to walk in through the door. Beria walked up to Stalin, bowed slightly, and said respectfully: "Hello, Comrade Stalin, I'm sorry to wake you up at this time, but I really came to see you for an important matter. ”

Stalin pointed to the small sofa across from his desk and said, "Sit down, Comrade Beria." If I'm not mistaken, what you're going to report to me should be the same thing that Rokossovsky just reported to me. ”

When Beria received the report from Lunev, he knew that Rokossovsky would report to Stalin by telephone. When the subordinates arranged at the Kremlin switchboard reported to him that Rokossovsky was on the phone with Stalin, he came to see Stalin with the compiled materials.

From the moment he entered the door, he had been observing the expression on Stalin's face in order to judge Stalin's attitude to the matter. Upon observation, he noticed that Stalin had been frowning slightly, as if he was worried about something. After sitting down on the small sofa, he was hesitating how to speak, but Stalin said what he meant.

Beria nodded vigorously, put the materials in his hand on the desk, and began his own report. In the course of the debriefing, Beria, who was good at observing words and feelings, found that Stalin was very interested in this new German model machine. As soon as the report was over, he said decisively: "Comrade Stalin, I think we should act immediately and send people to the German aircraft factories to seize these model machines. ”

Stalin did not answer him immediately, but got up and came out from behind his desk, pacing slowly in the open space in the middle of the office with his pipe in his mouth. Beria did not dare to disturb him, and quickly stood up, standing up straight next to the sofa, his eyes moving with the movement of Stalin's body.

I don't know how long it took, Stalin finally stopped, pointed at Beria with his fist holding a cigarette butt, and asked: "Comrade Beria, I am very much in favor of sending troops to the manufactory to seize the model machine. But whose troops do you think you should send to carry out this difficult and glorious task? ”