At 7:00 p.m. on August 17, 1991, the old bronze bell on the Kremlin clock tower, which was full of wrinkles from the passing of time, had just struck its seventh time, and the streets were already so sparsely populated that they could be described as desolate. The empire built on this ancient and declining land was like this gradually fading sunset, which, with the last ray of light fading away, emitted a heavy, silent, yet desolate sigh.
The red polar bear entrenched in Siberia looks up unwillingly at the glory of the past years, and then waits for the death sentence of old age too weak to bear the brunt of it.
At this time, Yanaev, holding a goblet at the banquet, felt the same melancholy as his beloved motherland, especially when he looked at the young and hopeful faces at the banquet, who were full of longing and hope for reform and the future. Yanaev knew that his negative emotions were not suitable for a happy banquet, even if it was just a desolate prosperity at the end of the road.
He stood up slowly, and the laughing crowd immediately stopped talking. Due to the bureaucratic rules, everyone was ready to stand up with him, but Yanayev firmly stopped this behavior. He raised his glass and slowly said in the puzzled eyes of the people below the stage, "Our motherland is facing various crises and tests. As you can see, not everyone understands and supports our construction and our lofty ideals. But we cannot deny her greatness. Our warriors and sacred beliefs will never be erased. Her glory still shines on each of us and guides us forward, forever."
When he finished his speech, the audience applauded mechanically. Yanayev knew that these subordinates were just trying to please him, even though his speech was from the heart. So he closed his eyes and said nothing.
He was originally a poor fellow whose name no one would remember, but because of a time travel accident, he was given a powerful but doomed role, Soviet Vice President Gennady Ivanovich Yanaev. As a participant and initiator of the August 19th Incident, he lived a miserable life after the coup failed and died in 2010.
Fortunately, Comrade Yanaev, who traveled through time, arrived one year ahead of schedule, which gave him more time to prepare than nothing.
"Comrade Yanaev, can you now announce what you want to say? I have summoned all the members of Alpha according to your instructions, although I don't know what you are planning." Sitting next to Yanaev was a middle-aged man with a Mediterranean hairstyle and a pair of thick black-framed glasses. He looked like an amiable intellectual, but people who knew his identity saw his face and immediately thought of a devil. Because he was Vladimir Alexandrovich Kryuchkov, the notorious chairman and director of the First Directorate of the KGB.
"Of course, Comrade Kryuchkov. In fact, I can assure you that it was a wonderful speech." Yanaev smiled mysteriously at Kryuchkov, picked up the glass and drank it all.
However, Director Kryuchkov did not have the calm expression of Yanaev, because what they were going to do tomorrow was a shocking conspiracy, and if it failed, they would all be charged with treason. And Comrade Yanaev was in a good mood to leisurely gather 30 members of the Alpha Special Forces to hold a banquet at the secret KGB base on Lenin Street. What on earth was he thinking?
Yanaev stood up. Everyone in the audience was watching the vice president's strange behavior, but Yanaev walked down from the stage as if no one was around. He walked up to these people, holding a glass of wine, and walked in front of these former KGB members and asked softly, "Do you believe in democracy? Do you believe that freedom can save the Soviet Union?"
In an instant, everyone's breathing became as if they were walking on thin ice. Although the people were discussing democracy and freedom in private, criticizing the Soviet Union's centralization and dictatorship, it was not a good thing for the country's top leader to openly talk about democracy with them. The members of Alpha and Signal Flag looked at each other in bewilderment. They did not dare to answer this question casually. Whether they answered yes or no, it might ruin their future, or even threaten their lives.
Yanayev did not expect these people to answer his questions. He said to himself, "Democracy, democracy, I'm sorry that democracy is not what we need. And to the disappointment of everyone present, Americans have tried to make democracy take root and develop in other countries in the past hundred years, but they have never succeeded once. On the contrary, they have established a large number of third-country dictators, such as Wu Dinh Diem, Syngman Rhee, Saddam, and Pahlavi. These countries do not even have the most basic conditions required to establish democracy. In addition, the so-called tolerance of those with different political views, respect for people of different beliefs, and humbly accepting journalists who sing against the president are not important at all."
Yanaev's remarks caused a huge uproar. Even Vice Chairman Kryuchkov beside him changed his expression in an instant, not to mention the special forces members who had rarely seen the methods used by the top leaders.
He continued, "Do you really think that you can establish democracy by relying on fundamentalists and religious principles, dropping a few bombs and electing a dictator? You are wrong. People don't actually need freedom or democracy. They need living security, rules and regulations, and someone to defend them against foreign invaders, and they also need to be wary of internal groups. They need someone to lead them, give them protection and confinement, so that wars and famines will no longer occur. As long as these benefits are given, everyone will be willing to obey your orders. Power changes everything, do you understand? Everyone."
Yanayev's words were too explicit, even heartbreaking. What feeds you is not the bullshit ideology or faith, but the sword and shield in my hand.
Yanayev was so absorbed in his speech that he had to put down his glass when he made some body movements. After the speech, he picked up the glass on the table again and looked at these poor people with a pitiful look. It was this group of people who were brainwashed by democracy and freedom who refused to carry out the mission of assassinating Yeltsin in the attack on the White House the day after tomorrow, which led to the failure of a series of domino collapses. I don't know if they will regret not agreeing to the Soviet high-level pleas in 1991 when they also oppose Yeltsin's shelling of the White House in the Kremlin two years later.
The atmosphere at the banquet reached a freezing point. No one dared to say a word, not even to answer Yanaev. This is the terrible thing about power. It can even turn an unarmed coward into a supreme king in an instant. Yanaev sighed, his eyes swept across everyone's faces, and then slowly asked, "If I give you a mission tonight and ask you to assassinate Yeltsin, will you go?"
This was Yanaev's last request. He hoped that someone would stand up instead of doing what happened in history, where all the Alpha soldiers put down their officer certificates and shook their heads to refuse to follow orders.
"No, I won't agree." Sure enough, the first voice of resistance was heard. Although it was weak, it hit Yanaev's heart like a heavy hammer, like the last straw that broke his remaining hope. Yanaev didn't even see the face of the first person who refused. Then someone followed the words of the previous person and made a series of rejections. Never agree.
Their slogan? Nothing more than for democracy, for freedom, for hope. I choose to reject it.
The spark of hope in Yanaev's eyes quickly dimmed. In fact, he had never held out hope in the beginning. He had already given these people a chance, but they just didn't cherish it. The answer from the Alpha members even made him breathe a sigh of relief. Yanaev smiled and stepped back a few steps. When he reached a safe distance, he raised the glass that had no more wine in it, toasted them and said, "Very good, this is to pay tribute to your freedom, and... the sacrifices you made for freedom."
Then Yanaev loosened his grip, and in full view of everyone, the exquisite crystal wine glass fell to the ground at the speed of free fall, breaking into pieces with a crisp sound. This was a secret code known only to Yanaev and the traitors, and even KGB Deputy Chairman Kryuchkov, who was sitting on the stage, had a confused expression.
The masked men who were lying in ambush outside the house rushed forward, and according to the script that had been laid out long ago, they all took out a submachine gun from their jackets and pointed it at the crowd at the banquet.