While the White House was gradually shrouded in conspiracy, the Kremlin seemed calm. Yanaev, who returned home after resolving the Baltic crisis with a tough attitude, was cheered by the people. The vast majority of Soviet people did not want the member states to separate from the unified Soviet Union, so Yanaev, who successfully prevented the separation of the three Baltic countries, undoubtedly became a hero in the hearts of the people. Although the domestic economic situation was as bad as before, this good news still gave a shot in the arm to the people who were shrouded in negative emotions.
When Yanaev got off the plane, the Soviet authorities specially arranged a grand welcome ceremony. Young men wearing red scarves presented him with wreaths, which made Yanaev feel that he was a patriotic hero who returned from Berlin in 1945. For this reason, Yanaev also held a special speech, which was specially chosen on a gloomy day with drizzling rain. He used an impassioned speech to talk about the crisis of the meeting for so many days, creating a tragic and gloomy atmosphere among the Moscow citizens who came with umbrellas.
"After resolving this crisis, we will still face many difficulties in the future, just as the thorns on the road to communism are daunting. Many people do not understand our ideals and beliefs, and many people no longer support our goals in disappointment. The proletariat has been enslaved for centuries, but now many people want to go back and continue to sleep in ignorance. Then I am willing to be the first warrior to break the blockade of darkness and move towards the light. Even if the capitalists sneer and mock, even if the enemy's knife is against my spine, even if the road ahead is full of traps, to those great communist fighters who are also sleeping in Berlin and the Far East, the motherland has not forgotten you."
Thunderous applause drowned out Yanayev's speech. He bowed affectionately to the people in the audience and waited until the applause ended before he straightened his back and said slowly, "And to the great Soviet people, thank you."
When the applause rang out again, it lasted for a long time. Many people clapped their hands until they were red, and many people had tears in their eyes. This tough leader made them regain some good feelings towards communism from the bottom of their hearts. Of course, those intellectuals would only say contemptuously that Yanayev's actions were a boring show. In their eyes, only the speeches of leaders of democratic countries were touching and sincere. The ban on newspapers had not yet ended, and these people could only count the time and wait for the end of martial law in two months.
Yanaev was very popular on the podium, but Director Plekhanov was worried. Few leaders he had met gave speeches as unorthodox as Yanaev. In the past, the president usually gave speeches in places where the KGB could fully control the situation, with carefully selected extras. But Yanaev chose the most spacious Red Square, where there was no hiding place. As long as someone hid behind a window and pulled the trigger, the top leader of the Soviet Union would be dead.
Of course, Plekhanov would not understand how important it is to be loved by the people. The prestige that the Communist Party of the Soviet Union had accumulated with great difficulty during the October Revolution was slowly squandered by successive governments after Lenin's death. It became a socialist country ruled by a huge bureaucratic system.
"The speech was wonderful, Mr. President." Putin handed Yanaev an umbrella and a towel as soon as he came down from the stage. In order to increase the sensational effect, Yanaev had close contact with the people of Moscow in the rain.
"Thank you, but I have to say that the rain in August is quite cold when it falls on your body." Yanayev wiped the rain off his face, handed the towel back to Putin, and asked, "Is there any movement in the Kremlin?"
The movement Yanaev was talking about was the new plan for saving the economy that Ryzhkov had been studying these days. Since the August 19th coup, the conservative forces in the Soviet Union have been growing stronger and stronger, so there are some things Yanaev cannot say openly. One day, those conservatives will be swept away by a correct and great path just like the radicals.
Putin looked around and confirmed that no one could hear their conversation before he whispered, "Minister Ryzhkov wants you to go to his office. He said he has an important document to discuss with you."
Yanayev nodded, opened his umbrella and walked out of the temporary shed built for the speech. Standing on the Red Square in the constant wind and rain, he said to Putin, "Prepare a car and go to Rezhkov's office now."
Then he added, "Moscow is just like this damn rainy weather. When will it really clear up?"
Ryzhkov was surprised to see President Yanaev outside his office, dripping wet, especially with his hair dripping with water. He thought the president had encountered some emergency. He quickly took out a towel from the bathroom and handed it to Yanaev, but Yanaev pushed him away and said directly, "I heard that you have an important document to discuss with me?"
"Oh, yes." Ryzhkov, waking up from a dream, quickly picked up a thick document from the table and handed it to Yanaev. "This is a relatively feasible plan that I came up with after analyzing and investigating these days. I referred to Lenin's New Economic Policy and the reform plans of other countries, and combined it with the specific conditions of my country to come up with a reliable plan."
"Thank you for your hard work, Comrade Ryzhkov." Yanaev opened Ryzhkov's copy, and the other party explained every policy in it in detail.
"We will first open up the prices of some commodities that are closely related to people's lives and conduct market-oriented experiments. For example, food such as potatoes and wheat will be controlled and adjusted by the market itself. However, judging from the problems that have arisen in economic market reforms in other countries, too rapid marketization will lead to hyperinflation of the currency. So, too, state-owned stores must do a good job of selling commodities at a fair price to curb inflation. Even supporting laws and regulations have been introduced, and anyone who hoards and drives up prices will be sentenced to a few years in prison."
"Just sentence them to death," Yanayev said. In history, Yeltsin's direct liberalization of prices led to repeated reselling of goods by state-owned enterprises and private partnerships, which led to malicious inflation of the currency. So Yanayev was more direct and used 7.62 caliber bullets to shut them up.
Hearing Yanayev's casual words about the death penalty, Ryzhkov's heart skipped a beat. He advised, "Wait, General Secretary. It's just price gouging. There's no need to impose the death penalty, right? Isn't that too harsh?"
"In times of turmoil, it is ridiculous to talk about democracy and freedom with those lawless people. Only strict laws can make those who take risks with a fluke attitude control their hands." Yanayev told Ryzhkov about his philosophy of governing the country, and applied the principle of "using severe punishment in troubled times" to the fullest. He also knew that if strict laws were not implemented, Soviet society would collapse in an even worse direction.
"In fact, a government-wide meeting announcement will have to be made to prohibit any official's relatives from participating in speculation. Once a direct relative is found to have violated the rules, the official will be removed from office." If the previous punishments were severe in times of chaos, Yanayev is now ruthless to officials.
He is the supreme leader who controls the machine of violence. He does not need to compromise with any corrupt official. Anyone who dares to become an obstacle to his goal of building the rule of law will be completely crushed by the gears of the machine of violence.
Ryzhkov sensed something unsettling in Yanayev's words. He thought to himself, "Is the General Secretary planning to target the huge bureaucracy? Will this be another Stalinist-style political purge?"
What Rezhkov was thinking was almost exactly what Yanayev was thinking. After initially gaining control of the army, what he had to do next was to dismiss the huge and bloated imperial bureaucracy, especially those guys who were promoted by Gorbachev and advocated Western democracy and freedom. These parasites who had been parasitic on the red regime and sucked blood for several years, it was time to send you to see God.