Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

Chapter 1003, Section 023: I, Solovyov, am not some unscrupulous Englishman like Amherst.

Fang Shouchou was from Tongcheng, Anhui, and also had the surname Fang, so there must be some connection between them.

His uncle, Fang Guancheng, also served as the Governor-General of Zhili. However, he was promoted to the position of Zhongshu by being strongly recommended step by step from his position as a staff member in the Prince's Palace. He served as the Governor-General of Zhili for twenty years.

Going back further, their family was implicated in the "Nanshan Case," and Fang Bao spent two years in prison. In the end, Emperor Kangxi released him because he valued his talent. However, many members of the Fang family went to Ningguta to work in rural areas, and their careers only gradually returned to normal afterward.

Fang Shouchou's ability to rise from the position of Governor of Henan to Governor-General of Zhili was also a manifestation of the feudal monarch's peculiar collecting habits.

The former, Na Yancheng, was also Agui's grandson.

However, Solovyov didn't know much about the Tongcheng School of literature. He was there to pay tribute on behalf of the Russian Tsar. After exchanging simple friendly greetings, he arranged for the envoys from various countries to come to the Zhili Governor-General's Office.

The entourage consisted of only necessary translators and attendants; the rest of the family members and attendants were accommodated in the officials' homes.

It was quite a coincidence that so many people came this time, arriving in Tianjin just in time for the Mid-Autumn Festival.

According to folk custom, mooncakes are indispensable, as is the banquet bestowed by Emperor Jiaqing.

At least the letter of state presented by Solovyov satisfied Emperor Jiaqing.

Although this font might not have been quite up to par for the Qing emperors, princes, nobles, and officials who had always practiced calligraphy, it was still dignified and neat.

The situation is much better than that of the British.

As for the court assembly, Emperor Jiaqing himself had already issued an imperial edict.

The meaning is quite simple: during the reigns of Emperor Shengzu Ren and Emperor Shizong Xian, Russia was different from other countries and was not among the vassal states. When envoys from both sides met each other's monarchs, they had to perform grand ceremonies.

In fact, Emperor Jiaqing was aware of the situation regarding the Golovkin mission in Uliastai. Fengshen Yinde, who was recuperating in Beijing, had brought back a report detailing the events. Later, when the Russian merchant group came to Beijing to take stock of their goods, they also came to "pay tribute," which clarified the matter for him.

However, the majesty of the Celestial Empire must still be maintained.

Therefore, as the Governor-General of Zhili, Fang Shouchou naturally had to observe proper etiquette when hosting foreigners on behalf of the Jiaqing Emperor.

However, this banquet will have to wait until later.

Now, Emperor Jiaqing has summoned the Grand Councilors, all the Grand Secretaries, officials from the Six Ministries, the Minister of the Court of State Ceremonies, the Minister and Vice Minister of the Court of Colonial Affairs, and the principal officials of various departments, all to have them draft a set of regulations.

Seeing that the usually good-tempered emperor had suddenly changed his attitude and even brought out the imperial edict from the time of the Holy Ancestor, they dared not be negligent.

They could usually fool the emperor, but this time the emperor forbade it, so they had no choice but to comply.

In the end, those old documents were brought out, and after Emperor Jiaqing read them, he also drafted an edict and stipulated the number of people in the delegation to enter the capital.

After the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet, the guests would first be entertained and toured at the Yuanmingyuan Garden before coming to the Forbidden City for a formal meeting.

That's how things were arranged. The former Minister of the Court of Colonial Affairs, He Shitai, was incompetent and was reassigned as the Military Governor of Rehe. Xin Qingpu, who took over, was put in charge of these matters.

Governor Fang's banquet in Tianjin was naturally for his own reasons.

The Jiaqing Emperor also reviewed the past events and reprimanded General Uliastai for his poor performance, but did not impose any further punishment.

The Russian side's explanation was also very clear: Count Golovkin's diplomatic misunderstanding stemmed from the instructions of Prince Czartoryski, the Polish prince who was then the "Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites and Minister of the Court of State Ceremonies" in Russia, and his own lack of understanding of Chinese etiquette and rules.

Even Emperor Jiaqing was unable to punish the perpetrators according to the precedent set in the 22nd year of Emperor Qianlong's reign when the British East India Company came to Tianjin to file a complaint.

After all, this letter was handwritten by the Russian envoy himself, so there was no need to find someone else to write it.

Let's leave it at that. Moreover, the Russian envoy also mentioned this tribute mission, hoping to exchange goods and services. The two countries have been at peace for over a hundred years, so naturally there should be a new treaty.

Because so many gifts were prepared, the gift list was even too extravagant. Even the usually frugal Emperor Jiaqing had to think carefully about how to receive them.

However, it is only right that the Minister of the Court of Colonial Affairs should make a trip there.

Qingpu accepted this task, and before he left, Jiaqing instructed him to pay attention to the movements of the Russian envoy.

This time, quite a few countries have come, which will give the Court of Colonial Affairs a headache.

Fortunately, Qingpu had a good father, Yin Jishan, who was a second-class Jinshi in the first year of Yongzheng's reign. He was a scholar among the Manchus. His brothers also held official positions. Yin Jishan's fourth son, Qinggui, once served as a Grand Councilor and a Grand Secretary of the Wenyuan Pavilion.

But unlike other Manchus, the brothers in this generation who became officials through the hereditary system all had a more scholarly air about them than other families.

His father, a scholar who had passed the imperial examination, was someone whom Emperor Yongzheng had once highly valued.

When Qingpu came to Tianjin this time, he was also worried that he would lose his official position.

These foreigners were all capable of causing trouble. Even when the Qianlong Emperor abdicated in favor of the emperor, the Dutch envoy still managed to get things done. He kowtowed and performed the grand ceremony flawlessly.

Of course, the Dutch translator was a French sinologist, not someone hired by the British, so they couldn't be compared to him.

Ney also had a translator this time, Rémusat, the president of the Sinology Society of the Collège de France. He was a literary figure and a self-taught scholar with a good understanding of official positions and Chinese classics. He was also good at translating novels, although he translated the early Qing Dynasty novel "Yu Jiao Li," which was done in 1826.

However, since the envoys were always in the front row, his main task was to translate for the officials in the back row.

With a Russian envoy there, the workload of the translators was significantly reduced.

Solovyov was sitting at the head of the table, sipping tea.

"The tools used here are also of good quality."

"The general also knows about porcelain?"

"I do know some, but the porcelain sold to our country is mostly from private kilns, so I have seen very little about official kilns."

However, Solovyov then recounted the history of porcelain development.

"As for the utensils used by adults, they are all from Quanzhou kilns, celadon with thin bodies, truly exquisite pieces. However, this is a principle I learned from reading, and I am seeing the actual objects for the first time."

"I don't want to have refined people overseas either."

"You flatter me, Governor. I am merely a soldier, not a civil official."

"But the general can also compose poems, write his own documents, and has read the books of sages. This is rare. He can be called a scholar-general from overseas."

Well, this mutual flattery in business really does change once it leaves Guangdong and Guangxi.

In particular, we must consider the Fang family's connections in the Qing Dynasty literary world. These people from Tongcheng had essentially formed a group.

Moreover, their family members often skipped ranks when holding official positions, which doesn't necessarily mean they followed the path of the imperial examinations.

Fang Bao, the most talented scholar, also suffered the loss of his mother during the imperial examination and was subsequently imprisoned for his literary inquisition. It was Emperor Kangxi who released him from prison.

Therefore, the emperor's favor is never-ending, which is probably a characteristic of the Fang family of Tongcheng.

Solovyov had a fairly good opinion of Jiang Youxian and Dong Jiaozeng, and even of the retired Pan Youwei. But he considered Fang Shouchou to be a mediocre official.

His official duties may have been decent, but they were within his capabilities.

Anything beyond his abilities is unacceptable.

As for Solovyov's conversation with him about the science of porcelain, both sides seemed to get along quite well.

However, Russians do drink tea primarily to quench their thirst. Although this Russian envoy was refined, he was ultimately a young general who had fought for twenty years, a veteran of countless battles, and was different from a scholar.

Even when he was holding a folding fan, it was still the same.

This was back in Guangzhou, when I bought a fan with Zheng Banqiao's inscription from a scholar through Pan Youdu's introduction.

Although the position of holding the fan is according to the style of a scholar, this action is a stereotype of a military general in the eyes of Qing Dynasty scholars.

However, things went relatively smoothly. After discussing porcelain, they moved on to tea.

"If the general likes it, he can take some Biluochun tea back with him."

"In Russia, you'd probably only see tea bricks, not something as rare as this."

Solovyov only saw black tea in Russia, and the tea traded in was rather crude. He had to specifically order from Chinese merchants in Kyakhta to get some good tea.

Fang Shouchou's side also provided very attentive hospitality.

"However, since it is Minister Qingpu of the Court of Colonial Affairs who is coming, or the Emperor is going to host a banquet, it involves matters of etiquette."

"If this were held at the Summer Palace, Mongolian princes would also have to perform a grand ceremony when the Emperor received them. Although I am a Russian envoy, I am aware of what Macartney said back then."

How do you explain it?

"He was also much more respectful than Amherst is today, and he praised Emperor Qianlong as a rare sage ruler. However, there were some disrespectful remarks, which were just disputes over etiquette and some minor matters."

"General, your knowledge is indeed quite extensive."

"I am also a good friend of the Regent of England, and I was the matchmaker for his only daughter, Princess Charlotte. The day our ships passed through England was also the day she and her husband entered their bridal chamber."

Well, at this point, the Qing Dynasty officials didn't nitpick over the wording. After all, the Crown Prince of England was in charge of the country, so it wasn't a problem for him to refer to his daughter's marriage as "marrying down" or "grand wedding."

He seemed much more reliable than someone like Amherst. Solovyov spoke without needing a translator, responding immediately, and his swiftness of response astonished the Qing officials.

It was as if the Russian envoy was a local, and even his accent sounded quite familiar.

"However, since the Emperor has invited you to a banquet, you must obey with utmost respect and practice the proper etiquette."

"You mean the Three Kneels and Nine Kowtows ceremony of the Celestial Empire? I already knew that. Why don't you let my son perform the ceremony before the Emperor's portrait?"

"Children also learned this?"

“My child is no different from others; he is the attendant of my queen’s beloved youngest daughter.”

Well, the next topic is that, having been childhood sweethearts, they will probably get engaged and become husband and wife in the future.

As the youngest daughter, Nastya was not wanted by Louisa to marry far away. It was always better for some of the daughters to marry closer to home so they could come back to visit their parents and uncles.

It would be good if she married someone from China.

Even Ney knew that Solovyov was highly trusted by Alexander and his wife.

The former was simply because it was useful, while the latter also involved past intimacy, which remains a secret to this day, and Katya was married to Solovyov only because Luisa insisted on the arranged marriage.

This same couple now frequently correspond with the Queen.

As for this statement, given that Solovyov himself was the deputy general of the two "kings" of Russia, the teacher of the two "kings," and even the civil officials considered him a junior tutor and the military officials considered him a junior protector, there is no problem with that.

His eldest son came to pay his respects, which must have been taught by his father. As the chief envoy, Solovyov was naturally able to master this kind of etiquette.

"Seeing my father and I bow first, the envoys from various countries will then know what kind of etiquette it is."

Fang Shouchou finally relaxed after hearing this.

At least it wasn't a bad job. The arrival of Amherst was like a mass distribution of bad luck to Qing Dynasty officials. Na Yancheng lost his position inexplicably before Amherst even arrived.

Qingpu's predecessor was dismissed in the same way, while Suleng'e was allowed to remain in office despite his crimes because of his experience in receiving British barbarians.

"If that's the case, then it's reassuring."

"Our etiquette is also very elaborate and complex, derived from the court etiquette of France. Before the reforms of my late father Peter the Great, we greeted each other like the Mongols, and there was also a custom of kneeling and bowing. When my wife prays to heaven at home, she also kneels on a prayer mat. In this respect, it is not comparable to the British."

Solovyov's words were met with nods of agreement from the officials of the Zhili Governor-General who were receiving him; finally, a normal foreigner had arrived.

However, Nei still had some objections to the kneeling ritual.

Von Felsson didn't care; when the Swedish and Dutch came to see the Chinese emperor, everyone obeyed the rule of kneeling.

Ney thought it wouldn't hurt to kneel before the emperor in person, but when faced with a portrait, he still had the same question about greetings as Golovkin.

Remusa, who was listening from the side, had a headache. Fortunately, none of the Qing Dynasty officials understood French, so he explained the situation to Solovyov.

"That's alright, I'll explain."

Remusa stepped aside, while Solovyov said, "Marshal, you have been on the battlefield for over twenty years and have many old wounds. In the Battle of St. Jean Hill, you lost five of your mounts to the British, so it is inevitable that your old wounds will flare up. When you meet the Emperor, you should naturally pay your respects with great ceremony, but what should you do when you are invited to a banquet?"

In short, as the Russian envoy, he did serve as a shield.

Incidentally, it was also mentioned that Ney suffered a relapse of an old injury during the war with the British, and has not yet fully recovered.

"This is also a matter of etiquette in the Celestial Empire. I hope the general will convey this to the Grand Marshal."

Solovyov turned to Ney and said, "Michel, I've given you a way out. After this trip, you'll still have to negotiate with their foreign minister and tribal administration minister, and you'll have to kneel before the emperor no matter what."

"When the time comes, you'll be the first to greet them, since this multinational delegation is led by you."

"Alright then, I'll give you a demonstration later."

Solovyov then replied to Fang Shouchou and Sulenge, who were relieved.

This time, I probably won't mess it up.

(End of this chapter)