Past events in Beicheng

Time suddenly lost its meaning and became a measuring tool.No one could understand Ivan's application for changing jobs. At least in the eyes of most people, he had a bright future in the army.But Ivan himself is just measuring the time, calculating how long it will take for him to restore his citizenship and go to China.Perhaps his request was too heterogeneous, and his application was not approved until [-], after Stalin's death.

Then he received a call from his mother, telling him that he would arrange for him to go to the Moscow Cultural Association.

"I don't know what to say. Your father won't tell me anything. I don't know why you stay in Leningrad alone. Honey, mom loves you. Mom doesn't know what to do for you. I only know that you want to go to China. Mo Wenxie may not need you as a redundant deputy secretary, but how about going back to Moscow? My dear, mother misses you." Elizabeth did not hear Ivan's response, her tone stagnated After a while, I realized that I was a little incoherent: "The Literary Association regularly visits China for exchanges, dear, go back to Moscow and live with us, okay?"

"I, I don't want you guys to argue about me anymore." After hesitating for a long time, Ivan finally had the courage to say: "Thank you mom, I...I think, I will go back to Moscow to see you and sister, but don't tell him, he didn't don't want to see me..."

"Vanya, you are the closest relatives!"

Yes, we are the closest relatives, and Ivan himself knows it, and he thinks his father knows it too, but maybe because we are the closest relatives, we can no longer forgive each other.

"Mom, I will come back to see you, thank you for letting me go to the Cultural Association."

When they returned to Moscow, the weather had turned cold, and Anya was pregnant with her second child. Her husband hugged her eldest son and greeted Ivan happily.Ivan touched his nephew's red face: "Black eyes."

"Yes, because I have black eyes." The brother-in-law laughed loudly: "I hope the second child will be a daughter, Anya, and I hope she can be as beautiful as your eyes."

His father still didn't come, and then he found out that his mother was much older, the once graceful woman was tortured out of her old state by her family.

"A female colleague of mine will come later," the brother-in-law smiled and winked at Ivan: "A female student who just graduated from medical school, the most beautiful girl in our hospital."

"Too young for me, I'm already 38 years old." Ivan smiled at him politely.

"No! My Soviet officer! My Secretary of the Cultural Association!" The brother-in-law pulled him aside: "You don't know how charming you are! This is a good girl, not just beautiful, dear, you should get married."

Ivan didn't speak, just nodded noncommittal.

During dinner, his father came late. After he exchanged pleasantries with everyone, the atmosphere during the dinner was quite relaxed, but the two people sitting across from each other did not speak to each other.The brother-in-law raised his wine glass and said that he wanted to have a toast. The female doctor sitting next to Ivan touched his wine glass in a friendly way.

"Thank you." Ivan responded politely to her.

The young female doctor smiled awkwardly, and looked away in disappointment.

After dinner, old Ivan left Anya's house in a hurry, and Elizabeth was unable to get angry because of the presence of guests: "I want to get some air on the balcony," she said to her son.

Moscow was brightly lit, the wounds of the war had gradually healed, the streets were full of people, and the noise was extraordinary.

"What a nice doctor girl, she has beautiful blue eyes."

"Thank you, Mom, I have to go to China."

"Is there a Chinese girl waiting for you?" Elizabeth patted the back of his hand gently: "Forgive your brother-in-law, he is a good man, he cares about you, and that poor girl is not wrong."

Ivan wanted to tell her that it wasn't a girl, but he couldn't.

"Go to her." Elizabeth touched a diamond brooch on her collar: "My life with your father may not be happy, but I love him as he loves me. If he is in China, I will go to him, you are my son, I can understand you, dear, so go to her."

go to China.

In June [-], he finally had such an opportunity.The aid project between China and the Soviet Union has been launched, and the Moscow Literary Association is gradually participating in it.

The distance from Beijing was not as far as he thought, and when he walked out of the airport, he smelled the eastern air, which made his heart throb.The secretary also came together, so his deputy secretary was not so eye-catching.Because of his request, the trip to Nanjing was arranged this time.Although the secretary didn't understand it, he still accepted it: "Nanjing is also an important cultural city, so why don't we take a walk?"

The itinerary in Beijing was longer, and they only stayed in Nanjing for three days.The Nanjing side matched him with a young Russian translator. This little girl had big eyes and had the most popular hairstyle in the Soviet Union.

When the little girl saw him for the first time, she stared at him generously for a long time, and finally said with emotion: "Secretary! Your eyes are purple!"

"Yes, your eyes are black!" Ivan couldn't help teasing her.

The little girl smiled broadly: "Do you like China?"

"like!"

The little girl was taken aback by his aggravated tone, and thought to herself, it seems that he really likes it!

There was a routine meeting ceremony the next day, and the writers of the Cultural Association communicated with each other. Ivan didn't feel impatient looking at these oriental faces.In the afternoon, Nanjing arranged for personnel from both sides to visit Qinhuai together.Ivan didn't go, and he took a leave of absence with the secretary: "I contacted the staff of the Nanjing Archives before I came, and we made an appointment to meet."

The secretary was an old friend of his mother, and he nodded, "I will greet you on the Chinese side. Don't worry, there is still one more day." The old secretary patted him on the shoulder.

The little translator would rather travel to Qinhuai with everyone than rush to the Nanjing Archives. She followed Ivan into the car and thought: Can I make an appointment tomorrow? It’s a pity that I can’t visit Nanjing?

Nanjing City is different from Beijing City in that it is not full of red palace walls.Ivan looked out from the car window and saw many yellow faces walking on the street. He even had a little illusion that he might meet him on the street.

"Hi, we meet again."

Will it be such a scene?Ivan thought to himself.

"Secretary, you are so happy." When Ivan turned his head, the little translation girl was looking at him.

"Yes, I'm very happy." Ivan nodded with a smile.

The staff of the Nanjing Archives received him very warmly. Ivan had already contacted here when he was in Moscow, so the Chinese staff who received him took the documents in his hand without even asking. read up.

"You speak Russian?"

"The curator specially arranged for me. I studied in the Soviet Union." The other party said with a smile.

"which year?"

"Moscow University in [-]." The man looked at it seriously: "The person you are looking for also came to the Soviet Union in [-]?"

"Yes."

The other party shook his head: "At that time, everyone went in batches. I don't think I knew him, and he was an engineering major, and I was a language major. Where did he go to the Soviet Union? I was from the Northeast."

"He came from Yunnan."

The other party picked up the photo and shook his head again: "I probably don't know him."

"He once told me that his father belonged to the Nanjing Chamber of Commerce, and his father died probably in [-]."

"Nanjing chamber of commerce? Maybe this is a good clue, but you don't know his father's name, nor the name of the chamber of commerce. There were many chambers of commerce at that time, and most of the files left to us by the national government were incomplete. You know Does his father have any business? Or is there a factory or store name."

Ivan shook his head.

"Before you came, I had sorted out all the files of the Japanese massacre in Nanjing. To be honest, there are too few records about the International Red Cross. There are no Chinese names in the records, and there is no one named Wang Yao. Is it possible for him to be registered under a foreign name?"

"I don't know, probably not. He is quite a strange person. He didn't seem to have given himself a German name when he was studying in Germany. When he went to the Soviet Union, he was also called by his real name."

"A family that can know the British ambassador. To be honest, although there are many in Nanjing, they are not common. The grandfather was an official, which is even rarer. It seems that the answer is right in front of us, but I have not found any clues. The other party took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes: "Over the past month, I have sometimes wondered whether the person you mentioned really exists."

"Of course it exists!" Ivan shouted.

"Sorry, I'm sorry." The other party was taken aback by his excitement.

Ivan controlled his emotions: "How about we change the direction, Southwest Associated University, where he taught for a year, and he joined the party there, I think there will be his record."

"Southwest Associated University was closed in [-], and now it has been divided into Tsinghua University, Peking University, and Nankai University. Kunming Teachers College remains in the old place. Tsinghua University and Peking University are in Beijing, and Nankai University is in Tianjin. They all major in mechanical engineering. This job The amount will be huge." The big Chinese looked at the person in the photo and thought for a moment: "Are you sure you want to find him?"

"I must find him!"

"Okay, give me time, I'll help you." The big man put down his glasses and looked at the Soviet man in front of him: "I have been to the Soviet Union, and I lived in the Soviet Union for three years. I didn't leave until Moscow was rescued. I will help you." , I love the Soviet Union as much as I love my troubled motherland, and I will help you."

"Thank you!"

Walking out of the archives, the translation girl was waiting for him at the door of the hall: "Secretary!"

She waved her hand rashly.

"Awaited."

"Don't be sad, we will find it." The translator girl followed.

"How do you know about me?" Ivan looked at her strangely.

"Because the person you saw was my father."

Ivan was amused by her.

"There are too many people named Wang in China, and too many people named Wang Yao. If your friend is like me, it will be easy to find. My surname is Qu. I should be the only person named Qu Yizhou in China, right?"

"Isn't there more people named Ivan than in the Soviet Union?"

"That shouldn't be possible!"

"If he is also looking for me, I think even if everyone in the Soviet Union is named Ivan, he can find me." Ivan opened the car door: "What's the matter with the cake?"

“Good food!”

"Sweet and salty?"

"Sweet!"

Really sweet, Ivan thought.

The car did not return to the hotel, and Ivan asked Qu Yizhou to take him to dinner.Nanjing is more prosperous than he thought, and it seems that the city's wounds are also healing. Those ancient and outstanding buildings seem to have the same cultural heritage as Leningrad, but more restrained and reserved.

"Nanjing's history is much longer than Leningrad!" Qu Translator's face was full of pride: "I am from Nanjing, ah! Nanjing is such a good place! I am willing to write a hundred poems for her, in Chinese and in Chinese. Russian is fine!"

Ivan didn't laugh at her vibrato, she was different from her parents, she didn't love the Soviet Union enough.

In the dim sum shop, Ivan saw the "skillful and elegant" dim sum he imagined. He tasted it and looked at the Chinese people buying food inside and outside the shop in a daze.

"Look, I'm surrounded by the Chinese." Ivan said to Wang Yao in his heart, "I know they're watching me, just like the Soviets are watching you when you and I go out on the street."

Qu Translator on the side kept talking non-stop, either talking or eating.

"Hello?" Ivan suddenly said something in Chinese.

Qu Translator opened his mouth wide in surprise: "Secretary! You can speak Chinese, and it's such a standard Nanjing dialect! That's amazing!"

"It's because my teacher is very good." Ivan felt his mood improved a bit: "Can you help me read the lyrics of a song?"

In a small teahouse, Ivan took out the lyrics he had transcribed from his bag: "I don't quite understand some parts."

Qu Yizhou read it again: "Song of the Four Seasons? Oh, it may be Zhou Xuan's Song of the Four Seasons! I know, I will write the Chinese lyrics for you."

Qu Yizhou hummed next to the first paragraph, and wrote the lyrics: "When spring comes, the windows are full of green, and the big girl embroiders mandarin ducks under the windows. Suddenly, there is a ruthless blow, and the mandarin ducks are beaten on each side."

"What is a mandarin duck?"

"A kind of bird symbolizes love in China. As long as they form a pair, they will never be separated for a lifetime."

"Summer comes and willows grow, and the eldest girl drifts to the Yangtze River. The scenery in the south of the Yangtze River and the north is so beautiful, how can it be sorghum with green yarn. Autumn comes, the lotus is fragrant, and the eldest girl dreams of her hometown every night. When she wakes up, she can't see her parents, but only sees the bright moonlight in front of the window. "

The little girl's voice is very cute, with a childlike childishness. The warm and gentle wind of Nanjing blows in from the window. Ivan looks at the Yangtze River outside the window. The river is as wide and as peaceful as this city. With what mood did he sing this song to him? If he knew the meaning of the lyrics on that day, would they not have to endure so many years of suffering?

"Winter is coming, snow is boundless, cold clothes are ready to give away lovers. Flesh and flesh build the Great Wall, I would like to be the little Meng Jiang back then." Qu Yizhou put down the pen.

"I don't quite understand the last sentence. When I first read it, to be honest, I only understood the lover."

These two words were enough to make him excited.

"This is a long-standing story, which has undergone too many adaptations," Qu Yizhou propped his chin: "but his theme will never change. It is about a wife who waits infatuatedly and tirelessly, even though her husband is dead. If she dies on the battlefield, she will cry down the Great Wall and meet him."

On the way back, Ivan didn't speak any more, just looked out the window.Qu Yizhou didn't know if she said something wrong, she felt that this Soviet man was very kind, and his handsome face made her feel good, but when his expression was melancholy, she didn't know how to speak again to make him talk. be happy.

After all, I'm the leader, so I'd better shut up.Qu Yizhou gave up her plan to continue admiring his purple eyes, and started staring at the street in a daze.

In the evening, when her father came back, Qu Translator, who was not yet proficient in Russian, shared with her father the case of the deputy secretary of the Moscow Cultural Association.

Her father was silent for a moment, then patted her on the head: "Maybe it's because he loves China so much."