Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

"The local governor is not here. If that's the case, he has probably taken his troops out."

"That's good, at least we don't have to meet with the British officials. We're not here as envoys to the British."

Solovyov understood what Zhao Lian meant, and he couldn't suppress the AK's smile.

When Yanzi was sent to Chu, he was visiting the State of Chu, not the Dog Country. Although the British had people familiar with Mandarin, they probably wouldn't have guessed such a deep joke.

"Your Highness, this is something that can only be understood intuitively. Chinese is a great language that can cleverly express many facts."

After leaving China, Solovyov spoke more relaxedly and tended to use vernacular Chinese.

Of course, Zhao Lian quickly figured it out; even the Eight Banner soldiers could understand her way of speaking.

Everyone present nodded in agreement.

However, the British High Commissioner, if that title still existed, would still be willing to host a reception.

Zhao Lian had some doubts, and the civil officials' first reaction was also to refuse.

"What is the purpose of this move by the British?"

"Since he is appointed to a local post, it is natural to extend hospitality to him. However, senior British civil servants are generally not on the same level as those foolish nobles."

"What about the Marquis of Hastings?"

"Your Highness, someone appointed as Governor-General of India, and capable of achieving several victories, must possess some ability. However, not every Governor-General of India is so capable. The Duke of Wellington's brother's success at this time is entirely due to the concerted efforts of his brother and the generals. As for Cornwallis..."

Wherever he suppressed rebellions, Cornwallis was always the one who was ineffective at suppressing bandits, which was also a unique trait.

Solovyov then mentioned the American Revolutionary War, the Irish Revolt, and the rebellions of Indian princely states.

Zhao Lian was also greatly impressed. Solovyov was not only familiar with Chinese culture, but also had some knowledge of the etiquette of the Ming and Qing dynasties.

The affairs of this world, especially current affairs, politics, and military intelligence, are things that a first-class general like him must be familiar with.

Even the prince was a little curious. He was the makings of a marshal, so why did the Russian monarch only appoint him as a first-class general?

"Because the title of Marshal is more of an honorary one, and only those who are highly respected in the court or born into a high position can receive this honor."

In fact, Solovyov himself has complained before that most of Russia's field marshals are incompetent.

Then, apart from Suvorov, none of the Grand Marshals had a good ending.

Solovyov considers himself too young to deserve such an honor.

He even felt that if he could turn the tide and become a first-class civil official instead of a second-class military officer, it would be better than becoming a marshal directly.

For no other reason than that the Grand Tutor, who could only command a division, was able to become a marshal simply because he was Alexander's foster father.

Many outstanding Russian generals typically only reach the rank of general.

Aside from Grand Marshal and Barclay, many of the veteran generals who rose from general to marshal were those who, upon reaching this level, suffered from intellectual disability as they aged, like Marshal Kamensky.

Well, sometimes it's better not to say anything.

If Solovyov had had the chance to be appointed marshal before the age of 50, he probably wouldn't have become as mentally deficient as some other marshals.

Now, the focus should be more on the British invitation.

The British may want to trade, but they also need to assess their own capabilities.

It was impossible for Solovyov to have secured any signing opportunities in Kolkata, and he was somewhat wary of this.

After all, this was the first time that Qing Dynasty officials had gone abroad, and they did not have full authority. Their mission was merely to "pacify" and exchange treaties, and to interact with the monarchs and heads of government of various countries along the way.

Based on Solovyov's understanding of the British, he knew that when the Qing delegation stopped here, they would definitely try to create some kind of trouble.

Therefore, he mentioned this matter to Zhaolian, but unexpectedly, Zhaolian was also on guard.

After all, Solovyov had spread the "British threat theory" in Beijing for so long that the Jiaqing Emperor and his ministers were highly vigilant against the British.

Although business still needs to be done, the British approach is indeed likely to cause dissatisfaction.

As for their ulterior motives, considering that there were not many people in Britain who were proficient in Chinese, the Qing Dynasty relied entirely on the Russian mission and French sinologists for translation, as well as Jesuit missionaries who boarded the ship in Macau.

These various factions all had a rather negative impression of the British.

Even someone like Solovyov had a very poor impression of the British.

Even if it were a British woman, she probably wouldn't interest him.

But when it comes to meals and receptions, it's not a bad thing to get to know the other party.

Moreover, British food is generally considered bad, so they probably prepare French or Italian dishes to make up for it.

The only concern is local food safety.

Although in India, the Ganges River had not yet become what it would become later; at best, it was merely a place where "water flows eastward, reminiscent of Su Shi's poems."

But India's classical biological and chemical weapons are very effective.

During the Classical period, numerous plagues were brought to the west via India and Persia.

As for the East, thanks to geological movements, the collision of the South Asian subcontinent and the main Asian tectonic plates created the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, so few plagues from India could reach China directly.

The number of celebrities who felled during this period was quite large, and for a time, Rome's crematoriums were not enough to meet the demand.

Solovyov was quite surprised at the banquet.

"what is this?"

"This is peacock meat."

Solovyov wasn't the type to indulge in unusual foods; during the march, he ate slightly better than the soldiers, or perhaps the same as them.

The banquet hosted by Emperor Jiaqing was actually quite substantial, and while some of the rare items were rare, they weren't as outrageous as they seemed.

"Eating peacocks in India?"

"To be honest, General, you can also get beef here."

Who are you?

“I am Lord Amherst.”

"Your failures in your missions to China always stem from certain issues. We have also encountered this before; experienced diplomats often find it difficult to solve these complex problems with China."

What do you mean?

“You should have served as an envoy in Naples, but that was only on the small island of Sicily. Murat was the one in Naples. That can’t be called experience, but I know of an even worse example. The problem is probably that the East India Company’s opinion and that of our former Foreign Minister are highly consistent in their stupidity.” Amherst couldn’t believe his ears after hearing this.

Solovyov was Napoleon's step-nephew by no blood relation. In the past, most of our knowledge of him came from his special interest in Oriental studies, as well as his status as an excellent soldier and amateur inventor.

In terms of diplomacy, Amherst never expected to be so successful.

“You seem somewhat surprised, Lord.”

"That's true, you've always presented yourself as a soldier."

"But I have also served as a military attaché in Paris and Stockholm, temporarily as an ambassador in Vienna, and as an envoy to Elba. Although these were all temporary jobs, they showed me that diplomacy can be quite interesting at times."

Amherst had also heard rumors, such as that Mr. Talleyrand could sense a kindred spirit in Solovyov.

Does that include trade as well?

"Chinese emperors were not like the Mughal Shahs. Chinese emperors were concerned with maintaining authority and were very serious about territorial matters. Whether it was a Chinese emperor or a Tatar emperor in that position, of course..."

Solovyov is actually a Ming Dynasty critic, because only the Ming Dynasty's territory has been shrinking since Zhu Yuanzhang (the fourth emperor of the Ming Dynasty).

Even Emperor Huizong of Song managed to make some progress in the Hehuang region, and the Tang Dynasty made itself look like a giant red star. Only the Ming Dynasty kept shrinking, and finally, with the curse of the flood, the Southern Ming Dynasty was completely destroyed.

"What else do you want to say?"

"Etiquette is a key issue in China. I had to use a lot of persuasion to make the Chinese emperor understand our intentions. It's easy to buy land from the Mughal Shah or a sultan or king in Southeast Asia, but in China it's a serious problem. Even in Macau, the Portuguese had to obey the arrangements of local Chinese officials to have a 'leasehold.' The usual methods used with countries around the Indian Ocean don't work there. This is the root cause of your mission's failure; several key conditions were unacceptable to the Chinese emperor."

And what about you?

"I will not reveal the treaty before His Majesty's formal approval. This matter will only be known to the Chinese Emperor through an edict issued by the Court of Colonial Affairs, which will first reach the port of Kyakhta."

As for Kyakhta, Speransky's men were still in charge of receiving messages.

Solovyov kept all the important documents on the ship and specially arranged for the most reliable soldiers in the Guards to guard them, so the British had no chance to steal the documents.

But they were able to sign trade agreements and trade in Guangzhou; this was public knowledge, and the Dutch had already acted as megaphones, spreading the relevant information throughout Europe.

This also meant business opportunities, and it included preferential treatment for the Dutch in terms of trade share in Guangzhou, which naturally satisfied the money-grubbing Dutch.

The only ones who suffered were the British themselves.

But it was impossible to persuade them to put aside their British imperial arrogance, and Solovyov knew that talking to them was useless.

He was unaware that Amherst would become Governor-General of India a few years later and launch a military campaign against Burma.

Burma itself is not important in this matter; the Qing Dynasty will only allow Britain to open trade in Guangzhou.

Despite possessing the largest share, the inability to establish formal trade regulations was a major and unprecedented failure in British diplomacy.

At least Macartney met Emperor Qianlong, and the emperor had a cordial and friendly exchange with them.

Amherst knew that the other party must have received many preferential treatments, which made him seem even more of a failure.

However, in Solovyov's view, the British cabinet at least made it clear during this mission that the main purpose was to achieve the mission's objectives.

Golovkin messed up what Caturreski did back then.

A Russian ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary could not even speak Russian and generally spoke only French in the St. Petersburg court.

Although he was a disciple of Count Stroganov and the father-in-law of Prince Saltkov, Solovyov was still not very polite in his speech.

If Amherst had been Russia's ambassador, Solovyov probably wouldn't have needed to make another trip to Asia.

However, with his incompetent allies in Britain, the East India Company, he was bound to fail.

Meanwhile, Staunton Jr. was talking to Zhaolian.

Staunton the Younger was somewhat curious that a Qing Dynasty prince would serve as an envoy to Europe.

Although Zhaolian was still able to politely mention the two British missions, especially the last one.

However, most of the officials accompanying the emperor were aware of Emperor Jiaqing's edict, and they were not particularly welcoming to Staunton.

However, this is mainly due to misunderstandings.

Staunton Jr. also knew that it would be quite difficult for him to return to China.

In the future, trade between Britain and the Qing Dynasty will also have Russia as a new competitor.

Although Russians may seem honest and simple, there are also cunning individuals like Solovyov.

Moreover, he was a China expert and surprisingly accomplished what several European missions had failed to achieve.

Of course, this also includes the fact that the Dutch were cheated out of the Ningbo port by the British. The Dutch could not compete with the British in the competition, so naturally they would also run into trouble.

The East India Company's key leaders in India didn't even have a chance to speak.

Even Qing Dynasty officials had to rely on French translators and missionaries to communicate with the British.

Ultimately, only Lord Amherst himself, Staunton Jr., and some colonial officials were able to communicate with the Qing delegation.

But it was just a joke, and in the end nothing came of it.

However, since Solovyov's fleet had reached India, the news that Qing Dynasty officials were going to Europe would naturally spread to Europe as well.

Zhaolian was satisfied with the hospitality of the British colonial authorities, and even mentioned that she hoped the next time the British envoy came, they would first and foremost respect the etiquette and system of the Celestial Empire.

"What does it mean?"

Amherst asked Solovyov a question, and Solovyov began to speak at length.

He speaks French with a southern French accent, and he speaks rather quickly.

However, the translator was still able to grasp the key points. Solovyov mentioned that China has attached great importance to etiquette since the Shang Dynasty 3000 years ago, and has worshipped gods and spirits. By the Zhou Dynasty, it had become a civilization of ritual and music.

Etiquette is very important, and the saying "it is impolite not to reciprocate" has continued to this day. It was precisely because the Eight-Nation Mission respected the etiquette of the Qing Dynasty that they were able to receive such a generous reward.

Moreover, in China, many things still need to be done according to Chinese rules.

Solovyov even mentioned that the Qing Dynasty delegation that arrived in Russia during the Yongzheng era also showed great respect to Empress Anna and bowed according to Chinese etiquette.

Although not a single word of profanity was uttered, it still made it clear that only the British were considered barbarians.

Even Indians, when they went to China to do business in the past, understood this principle.

In the end, only the British themselves were left bewildered. (End of Chapter)