War Photographer's Notebook

Chapter 131 The Wounded Fishing Net
On April 4th, at eight o'clock in the evening.The Soviet artillery fire that had been raging for an entire hour finally died down. Before the smoke cleared, the 28th Regiment of the 79th Division under the 150th Infantry Army of the Soviet Red Army, under the cover of numerous firepower, once again started the attack on the Moltke Bridge. attack.

At the same time, in the basement of the clinic, which was only lit by a flashlight, Wei Ran and the others also slapped the dust off their bodies, and their faces showed the look of fear after a catastrophe.

"The artillery has stopped, I'll go up and have a look." Father Hans said as he was about to get up.

"Let me go!" Marco was the first to stand up, "I'll go and have a look."

"Let me go, I can speak Russian."

Wei Ran pulled Marco back, "Marco, you are guarding the entrance with a gun."

Hearing this, Marco looked at Father Hans, who hesitated for a moment and then nodded, "Marco, give him the pistol."

"No need." Wei Ran waved his hand, "I have a weapon, you should turn off the flashlight first."

Without waiting for the others to say anything, Wei Ran stepped on the ladder and climbed to the top of the cave entrance. After Father Hans turned off the flashlight, he pushed hard on the bathtub above his head and pushed it upwards with great effort. A gap the size of a fist was revealed.

Looking out from this gap, Wei Ran continued to push it open, and climbed up cautiously.

After an hour of shelling, the two sides of this not-so-wide alley had been reduced to ruins, and the location of the cinema not far away could even be seen at a glance.It's just that it has now become a burning ruin.
Wei Ran retracted his eyes silently, and focused his attention on a closer position. The toilet that serves as the entrance and exit of the basement has only two walls that are connected to the vents, and there is still a basement that is less than one meter high. Halfway through, even the surrounding collapsed ruins were blown aside by the air waves generated by the explosion.

Even in the open space less than 20 meters away from the basement, there was an extra bomb crater smoking gunpowder.Look at the bomb crater that originally supported the medical tent, but now it has become a pile of building ruins three to four meters high.

Are these idiots using Stalin's Hammer here?
Wei Ran swallowed his saliva, carefully climbed up the pile of ruins, took out the binoculars from the leather notebook, and pointed it in the direction of the Moltke Bridge.With the help of the flares that rose from time to time, he could barely see the Soviet Red Army on the bridge who fell to the ground like wheat harvested under machine gun fire!
Carefully climbing down from the ruins, Wei Ran put away the binoculars, bent down to pick up a hemostat that reflected the flames, and went secretly. Unfortunately, those medicines and supplies that hadn't had time to be transported into the basement were all destroyed by the explosion.

Walking back to the bathtub with one foot deep and one foot shallow, Wei Ran first lay down on the vent only half a meter above the ground and shouted, "It's me, I'm going down, don't shoot."

"I've put the gun away," Marco responded from the other end of the vent.

Hearing this, Wei Ran looked around again, and after confirming that it was safe, he lifted the bathtub, lay down in the dark hole and said, "The Soviets are still fighting for the Moltke Bridge, but our surroundings have been bombed to pieces. "

"Where's the movie theater? How about the movie theater?" Father Hans leaned closer and asked nervously.

Wei Ran was silent for a moment, then shook his head lightly, but he didn't know how to answer this question at all.

Not long after, Father Hans, Doctor Rocky, and Marco climbed up from the basement one after another. After seeing the miserable scene of ruins around them, they all fell silent.

"Should we continue to hide in the basement?" Marco hid his body in the shadows and asked, "We have enough food and various medicines, and we can last for a long time."

"But we didn't prepare much water." Wei Ran couldn't help reminding that there were about 20 people in that basement including the four of them, and drinking water alone was not a small amount every day.

"The Soviets will call soon," Dr. Lodge reminded, "maybe."

"Did you really expect them to be angels who came to save us?"

Father Hans was extraordinarily sober at this time, "Before they fight over, we need to get enough water from the river. I have a feeling that even if the war is over, the women in the basement will be the last in a short time. It's better not to come out."

Dr. Rocky looked in the direction of the Maoqi Bridge in surprise, then nodded, "Everyone, go around and look for containers that can hold water. After half an hour, we will go to the river to fetch water."

Hearing this, everyone dispersed immediately, looking for containers that could be used to hold water in the ruins.Soon, large and small buckets, soup pots, and several 20-liter gasoline drums originally used to hold kerosene were collected and piled up next to the bathtub.

"One person with two buckets, let's run a few more times."

After Father Hans finished speaking, he picked up the only two gasoline cans and walked towards the Spree River.The kerosene in these two oil barrels has been used up, and they were used to hold water the day before yesterday, and they have been kept in the storage room next to the bathroom, Wei Ran dug them out just now.

"Marco, you can just take one bucket, and take an extra submachine gun." After Wei Ran finished speaking, he picked up two buckets and followed Father Hans and Dr. Rocky who was walking in the front.

Upon hearing this, Marco quickly loaded the submachine gun on his shoulder with bullets, and then followed up with a metal bucket that was deformed by a brick.

Amidst the frightening sound of firefights, a group of four cautiously approached the direction of the Spree River under the cover of a large number of surrounding ruins.

As the distance got closer, everyone in the dark could see more and more clearly the intertwined fire snakes on the Moltke Bridge, the soldiers who kept falling, and even the explosions happening everywhere.

"Don't look, hurry up! Maybe the Soviets will call you later." Father Hans urged, carrying two buckets, and crawled across the river bank with Wei Ran in no particular order. on the street.

"You fetch water first, I'll go see if there are any fish in the fishing net." Dr. Rocky said in a low voice after crawling over.

"Let me help you!" Wei Ran remembered the experience of picking up the corpse yesterday, and hurriedly handed the bucket that had just been tied to the rope to Marco beside him.

Following the location in memory, the two climbed more than ten meters in the direction close to the Moltke Bridge, and then found the rope tied to half of the street light pole.

However, within two pulls, they felt the unusual weight, and even heard a muffled groan coming from under the embankment.

"Someone!" Dr. Rocky couldn't help exclaiming.

"It seems to be alive this time!" After Wei Ran finished speaking, he tightened his helmet, carefully put his head under the river embankment, and then saw a black, wet muzzle aimed at the tip of his nose.

However, before he could dodge, the arm holding the gun dropped limply, and the Nagant revolver he was holding in his hand also fell into the muddy river with a "plop".

"It's a Soviet guy who seems to be alive!"

Wei Ran subconsciously reached out and grabbed the opponent's arm, and then said, "There is one more, two Soviets!"

With little hesitation, Dr. Rocky made a decision, "Hans! Marco, come and help save me!"

Hearing this, Father Hans and Marko hurried over, and after learning that there were two Soviets below, they immediately drew out a scalpel to cut the rope connected to the fishing net.

"Save people!" Dr. Rocky grabbed Father Hans' wrist and said very seriously, "I mean save them!"

"But they are Russians, they will"

Before Marko finished speaking, Dr. Lodge said seriously, "In my clinic, except for the dog on a leash, he must die. Regardless of whether he is a Soviet, German or Jew, as long as he is not dead, he must provide medical assistance!"

"Stupid work ethic"

Father Hans reluctantly put away the scalpel, called Marco to help, and dragged the two people who were hanging on the fishing net up.

It wasn't until the two men were pulled onto the river embankment that everyone could see clearly through the flares that flew up from time to time that the left leg of the Soviet Red Army who had just pointed a gun at Wei Ran had only one muscle left. broken.

I don't know whether it was his active or unintentional operation. The rope connected to the fishing net tightly wrapped around the knee socket of this leg, and he used his own gravity to tighten the rope to stop the bleeding.

The other person was even more miserable. His abdomen was already stained red with blood, and the wound was strangled by the belt connected to the previous person, while his lower body was completely soaked in the muddy river water. Even on his back, there seemed to be a piece of shrapnel the size of a lighter!
Dr. Lodge and Father Hans tested their breath respectively. The former even took off his stethoscope and listened to their heartbeats. After confirming that they were still alive, he hurriedly said, "Take them back first!"

"don't worry"

Father Hans and Wei Ran said in unison, and then they took off all the weapons on the two unconscious wounded in no particular order.

Four people in groups of two and two, carried the two wounded who might die at any moment, and returned to the edge of the ruins of the clinic with difficulty.After some searching, they carried the two wounded to the wreckage of a room with only three walls less than one meter high.

"Victor, you go to the basement and get the first aid kit and gas lamp"

Dr. Lodge cut open the clothes around the wound with the surgical scissors he carried with him, and continued, "Marco, fetch water yourself!"

"Okay! Okay!" Marco ran towards the direction of the river and disappeared.

At the same time, Wei Ran moved out of the bathtub again, and with the help of the women inside, he brought up three first-aid kits with iron seals and two kerosene lamps.

By the time he lit the gas lamp, Father Hans and Dr. Lodge had already unpacked the three unused first-aid kits, and tied horses to the two wounded.

These three first-aid kits were specially sent to the basement by Dr. Lodge ahead of time. In his words, after the war, the three of them could completely rely on the medical equipment in these three boxes and other medicines stored in the basement to recover. Run the clinic.But now it seems that the clinic, which was destroyed less than half an hour ago, will obviously start business before the end of the war.

"Victor, you come for the amputation."

Dr. Lodge allowed Wei Ran to hang the kerosene lamp on the remaining clothes hook on the wall, and commanded very fast, "Leave this injured abdomen to us. His injury is a bit serious. I don't know if he can survive. .”

"Should I call Nurse Lai Ni up to help?" Wei Ran raised a high-backed chair while asking, and hung the second lit kerosene lamp on it.

"There are no nurses here, never before. Not even women, no matter adults or minors." Father Hans raised his head, and said to Wei Ran very seriously.

"I understand"

Wei Ran nodded, put on rubber gloves in silence, and proceeded step by step to amputate the Soviet Red Army who once pointed a gun at him.

In the past few days, with a large number of wounded people practicing their hands, he has performed such amputations many times.Even during the operation, he distractedly glanced at the comatose Red Army soldier's shoulder patch.

"Is it a captain? It seems to be an instructor?" Wei Ran muttered to himself, and then put aside his distracting thoughts, and started the bloody work of cutting flesh and sawing bones.

Under the busyness of the three of them, the intense rescue work was carried out in an orderly manner, and Marco also went back and forth among the ruins, filling all the containers they collected not long ago with cold river water.

Even after asking Father Hans, Marco lit a bonfire in the remaining fireplace in a room not far from them. After processing the fish, I threw them into a few helmets that acted as soup pots and German lunch boxes to prepare fish soup.

When the faint fragrance jumped over the broken wall and floated into the temporary operating room, Wei Ran basically finished the work roughly.After dressing the wound, he casually covered him with a blanket, and immediately moved the high-backed chair with the kerosene lamp hanging to Father Hans's side, and then put on new gloves to help.

"For the first time, I felt that Victor's rough suturing method might be the correct operation," Dr. Lodge joked while he was busy.

"He is more suitable for saving lives on the battlefield, not for your broken clinic, Rocky, just give up." Father Hans teased Dr. Rocky, who has been sending offers to Wei Ran these two days, and took it tacitly Wei Ran handed over the hemostat, and began to explain in detail as usual.

As time passed by, more and more bloody gauze was discarded around the table serving as the operating table, but the expressions of the three became more and more relaxed.

Leaving the final stitching work to Dr. Rocky, Father Hans took off his gloves and threw them directly outside the wall. He followed Wei Ran and said as he walked to the next door, "Fortunately, he only hurt the useless appendix. It is up to him to survive, as long as he survives the abdominal infection, he may have a chance to survive."

"Penicillin in this era is a magic drug, so it shouldn't kill you." Wei Ran muttered to himself, and picked up the thing he found from the body of the Soviet Red Army who was amputated by himself before the operation started.

　Thanks to Atu Xiaozhu and Fei Wushou for rewarding 100 points respectively

　　
　
(End of this chapter)