Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

The secret agreement was a common type of behind-the-scenes deal in Europe.

In modern times, diplomats are often in the spotlight when they go out, and some of the routines that were used before the 19th century are no longer effective in the 21st century.

Kissinger was arguably the last diplomat who could demonstrate his political acumen in the backroom.

In the future, public displays of affection, with children lining up, will sometimes seem funny to people.

It's no wonder that Europe, a place that has established a modern diplomatic system, now acts like children bickering.

Emperor Jiaqing himself would not immediately agree to such a thing, as it was ultimately a matter of the face of the Celestial Empire.

Therefore, he focused more on the first two items.

"I know that the three strategies proposed by Minister Suo are ingenious and well thought out. However, matters of secret agreement require careful consideration and cannot be concluded in just a few words."

Since Solovyov had revealed his hand, Emperor Jiaqing also made his stance clear.

"As for strengthening coastal defenses and introducing foreign troops, these are all feasible measures."

Emperor Jiaqing is still unaware of his temple name. During his reign, apart from fighting the White Lotus Rebellion for seven years and then experiencing two more years of turmoil after the White Lotus Rebellion was suppressed, things were generally peaceful except for one peculiar sect, the Heavenly Principle Sect, which managed to gain considerable influence in the capital.

From the perspective of officials and the people, he had done his utmost to benevolent and righteous, abolishing literary inquisitions, which was worthy of his temple name.

As for the introduction of foreign troops, the Qing emperors, who came from outside the Great Wall, surprisingly had no objections.

Solovyov's earlier remarks came in handy; he mentioned that among the three upper banners, there was a Russian zuoling (military officer) of the Bordered Yellow Banner, and inevitably, some Albazinians were scattered throughout the various banners.

Those who were defeated and captured, or who fled to the Qing Dynasty.

The Russians among them have had their bloodline diluted considerably.

Because of this Zuo Ling (military commander), Emperor Jiaqing would not have any objection to introducing some Cossacks.

"As for the Red Barbarians, I think their current situation is truly pitiful. However, coming from the three islands of England, the sea journey is so long, which is inevitably very costly."

In fact, based on what Jiaqing said, all those online articles that constantly talk about importing people from China into their own territory could be shut down.

Solovyov's first thought upon hearing this was about money.

He had actually considered it. In Ireland, a typical farming family consists of several people, and the wife is very fertile. If they wanted to go to America, there would be plenty of vacant land there.

However, once they go to America, under those railway tracks, there will be Chinese, Irish, and nearby destroyed Native American tribes lying there. It's not a good place to go.

Moreover, the Irish, until a hapless man became president, had a very low social status in the Americas.

As for the orphans and widows in Ireland, they were also victims of bullying.

If it's a little girl who's all alone and helpless, then it's even worse.

Sending them directly to Australia to be wives of exiled convicts is one of the less immoral aspects of British rule, which was considered a major violation of morality.

Even if she gets beaten and scolded all the time, at least she has a home. Although that alcoholic man beats his wife at home, he's not exactly a coward outside.

In fact, there's a touch of dark humor in it.

Solovyov knew that what Jiaqing was worried about was that a barbarian soldier would come and take a wife here, which would be fine.

If a whole family comes, and if the number of people is larger than the Weasley family's population at the end of the HP series, the food consumption will be quite high.

"Your Majesty, I believe that if merchant ships pick up civilians along the way and bring them along, it would only consume food."

"What is your opinion, Suo Qing?"

Solovyov knew that the model would work.

So he took out a model of the clipper boat and placed it in front of Jiaqing.

"Your Majesty, please look. These clipper ships are the fastest. If a ship sails from Europe and travels back and forth across the Atlantic, its speed is doubled when the wind is favorable, and it can arrive several days earlier. If it is sailing from Europe to the Celestial Empire, there are many towns along the way for resupply. It includes the territories of various countries, so it is not a problem to stop and resupply along the way to save money for the food of a dozen or so people."

In fact, if more people came, there could be a hundred Irish people on one ship.

However, this was not a slave trade; it was simply hitchhiking.

Trade between Russia and France and the Qing Dynasty naturally involved frequent shipments from St. Petersburg and Brest.

Who knows what kind of people will come then?

In fact, Solovyov was supposed to arrange for them to come over, but if things go wrong, Europe might end up with people coming from all over the world because of land shortages.

Germans who went to Russia could be exempted from military service for several decades on the land they cultivated.

However, during the Qing Dynasty, you still had to serve in the army before you could be given land and rations based on your family's circumstances.

Therefore, those who are willing to go to Russia are probably not a minority.

But Russia already had enough Germans.

People from other areas also need to be accommodated.

At the same time, there's another problem to solve: those damn Poles.

Aside from a few die-hards who will be sent to North America, quite a few will be sent elsewhere.

"You came along the way?"

“Your Majesty, it was really just a side trip. It’s not like we’re moving tens of thousands of households to Liaodong in a single year. As far as I can tell, it will be at least ten years before the British arrive. If we move the British here in ten years, we can still get over a thousand households and several thousand soldiers for concentrated training. That would be quite feasible.”

"This matter still needs to be discussed with various countries. I am aware that Russia is overseas, except for the North American territory mentioned by Minister Suo, all of which are en route. Is this true?"

"That's natural, but since other countries are coming, we will inevitably provide them with convenience."

Solovyov was referring to the atmosphere group outside of France.

Of course, the Netherlands and Portugal, if they wanted to help, could do so because their merchant ships were still quite large and they had several colonies along the way.

"Since that's the case, I agree. However, there should be a set of rules in place for trade."

Upon hearing this, Solovyov understood the situation.

As for the instructors he would hire, he would have to see Jiaqing's attitude on that matter.

The German states always sent their people out to serve in the military, and even Hesse became like a small mercenary nation.

However, regarding officers, Solovyov did not consider the matter of German officers because countries like Hesse and Hanover had close ties with Britain.

Moreover, his brother-in-law Christian, after returning home, no longer wanted to serve in the army.

Moreover, he was only suited to leading elite troops in fierce battles; he lacked the ability to coordinate the overall situation. He probably needed to consider this more during his time in the Qing Dynasty.

If he makes thorough plans, or if he interacts with the Qing Dynasty in the future and updates intelligence in a timely manner, there will still be time to make adjustments.

He said that the British might come in ten years, which is a relatively fast estimate.

Because the British had not yet started using clipper ships, and they believed that although Russian ships were fast, they were less stable at sea as merchant ships than the traditional galleon type.

By the time the Americans, through sheer ingenuity, manage to develop clipper boats, the British will probably realize just how powerful these things are.

In addition, during the war, Russian merchant ships' navigation in the Atlantic was constantly affected, and they were often faster than their opponents, so the British rarely managed to capture such ships.

For Britain to truly launch an attack, the earliest it could happen was when the East India Company lost its monopoly.

This was mentioned by Solovyov himself, who estimated that this timeframe would have to wait until the next authorization from the British Parliament.

Once British merchant ships ventured out of the mainland, they would come to China to do business. When they stationed commercial representatives in Macau, interest groups would inevitably voice their demands and resort to war to achieve their free trade goals.

In reality, this free trade was only relative. Even the British sold necessities, and many of the goods were impractical for the Chinese.

They would then take the risk and engage in smuggling.

In order to protect their own interests, the British will certainly resort to underhanded tactics.

Solovyov had dealt with them for a long time and was more familiar with the situation than the emperors and ministers of the Qing Dynasty.

He then looked at Lin Zexu, who was still very young at the time, just over thirty years old.

He stood aside without saying a word, just staring at Solovyov's drawing work.

These markings have given the Qing Dynasty a clear signal: they should just do as planned.

As for the matter of recruiting soldiers, after Jiaqing sat back down behind his desk, he summoned Tuojin.

"Tuojin, if we incorporate the Hongyi (foreigners) into the Eight Banners and train them as banner soldiers in various garrisons, would that be feasible for this trip?"

“Your Majesty, if they are incorporated into the Eight Banners, the barbarians have not yet arrived in China and their backgrounds are unknown. Unlike General Suo, who is well-read, reasonable, and knowledgeable in military affairs, they should be taken in and trained separately. As for the matter of the Russian captain, it should be discussed with the Manchu commander of the Bordered Yellow Banner. In addition, there are those who are incorporated into the various banners. Even after they are promoted to banners, they must be managed properly, otherwise trouble will arise.”

"Suo Qing, you heard everything, how should we deal with this?"

“Your Majesty, if we follow the advice of the magistrate, the Red Barbarians will naturally be assigned to the two Red Banners. If the Cossacks bring horses, they will naturally be assigned to the Zuo-ling (military command) or a separate Zuo-ling will be formed. However, matters concerning the banners are not something that an outsider can discuss.”

"I know that the affairs of the Banners do not require your assistance. But for matters of planning, a set of rules must be drawn up. Minister Suo, could you propose a method for dealing with the relocation of foreigners to various places?"

"I have my own way. Bring me paper and pen."

Solovyov used a brush pen, and his handwriting was passable.

He usually uses a hard pen because it's more convenient and fluent for writing.

Using a calligraphy brush now would be a tactical adjustment.

Write slowly, so he has some time to think.

The fact that the Russian Zuo Ling (a military unit) was included in the Bordered Yellow Banner, and even in the Manchu Banner, was unexpected by Solovyov.

He wanted to bring in foreign soldiers and officials for the Jiaqing Emperor. Those who served as officers and sailed warships would become professionals and be counted as a separate group.

It was as if the French had come; Solovyov had written down on paper what he meant by Plain White Banner and Bordered White Banner.

But at this time, it was not the French flag, because the Bourbon army originally carried a white flag with an iris pattern.

The Irish were counted under the red flag, while the rest of the people were counted under the two blue flags.

Solovyov's writing made Jiaqing understand the matter of lowering the Five Banners.

However, apart from the fixed number of soldiers in the Russian Zuoling (military command), the rest of the soldiers from various banners were no different from ordinary civilians.

The Irish could at most guarantee themselves some extra land to cultivate. If they didn't have qualified soldiers, they wouldn't be considered standard-bearers, but rather auxiliary soldiers recruited to garrison various places.

Based on his own experience in training troops, Solovyov proposed to establish an army based on new tactics, using battalions as the unit, and ultimately selecting elite troops from the Eight Banners and Green Standard Army to replace their weapons and cooperate with the existing Qing army.

In his own writing, he seems to have portrayed the Qing Dynasty's army as a large, mixed army of Ottoman soldiers.

However, compared to the Ottoman sultans, the Qing emperors performed far better.

As for the King of England, let's hope Charlotte is alright.

If something happens to her and a Victoria emerges, just look at how immoral the British were during her reign—how many people starved to death in India, the concentration camps in South Africa, and the Irish famine. Those three are enough.

Even ignoring the events that occurred during those trade activities, the opium trade, which was a form of insidious violence, and the exploitation of workers in Britain, the list of crimes is endless.

However, Charlotte's situation probably won't affect what the council will ultimately do.

Essentially, what's most unethical about Britain is its system and its operational mechanisms.

Moreover, they are still in the stage where they can skillfully use gunboats, and often, for reasons unknown, they have already attacked.

After writing it down, Jiaqing saw that Solovyov had arranged the personnel, the army, the weapons to be used, and the locations of the garrisons in great detail.

It was clearly prepared beforehand, and Emperor Jiaqing was very satisfied after seeing it.

"In this way, I feel much more at ease. Minister Suo, I think this method is excellent."

"However, it is not enough to be complacent. With these barbarian soldiers, His Majesty still needs to spread education and indoctrination to make them grateful for the grace of the Celestial Empire and the Emperor. If they cannot be educated, they may not be able to become an asset."

"I am aware of this, therefore we cannot employ all the barbarian men. Tuojin."

"The minister is here."

"Go and draft a proposal, requesting the Solon soldiers, the Eight Banners outside the pass, and the elite troops stationed in various places, each with their own vanguard."

"Your Majesty, what is the reason for this?"

"Head to Tianjin. This winter, you may select princes and ministers to observe how the Russian troops led by Minister Suo are deployed and arrayed."

Yes, the ball was passed to Solovyov.

Now that Fukang'an is gone, who knows what the other ministers can figure out.

But the goal was to let these princes and nobles see for themselves how Russian officers, soldiers, and warships trained.

That's a good thing, at least they're not blind to it. (End of Chapter)