Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

Chapter 107 007 Mr. Talleyrand, you are asking for a bribe again! Can it be called a bribe when a noble asks for a bribe?

Solovyov's vacation was not arranged forcibly. As the battalion commander of the 1st Battalion of the Pavlovsk Regiment, this garrison accompanied the Tsar most often. Even when the Tsar moved to the Pavlovsk Palace, he had to accompany him.

If he wants to take leave, his vacation time has now increased from 28 days a year for low-ranking officers to 30 days a year for middle and senior officers. Although he has vacation time, he just leaves the barracks and goes home or to the village assigned to him. He has nowhere else to go.

Moreover, the Tsar's family had come to him for help too many times, and now he was walking with the Tsar in the corridors of Pavlovsk.

If he had not shown his abilities, with his status, even if he lived to an old age, he might have just been like his old father, a country gentleman in Ryazan, and ended his life peacefully. Even Napoleon could not have visited his house.

However, he still wanted to make his life more meaningful, but he didn't expect that the progress was so fast. With his personal efforts and opportunities, he has reached such a position.

In fact, compared with ordinary Guards officers, except for those young masters with connections from top wealthy families, the rest are children of local registered nobles. He is right in between the two. Although he has friends on both sides and the relationships are pretty good, he can't enter the circles of either side.

The three Prince Dolgorukov brothers had a good impression of him, but those noble children were unwilling to accept his title after hearing about it, and he also couldn't stand the group of hooligans below him.

Therefore he always felt lonely, and the Tsar happened to be a lonely person as well.

"Come here, Major. I've thought about it. The fast sailing ship you mentioned can be built in the Navy Department's factory. But the technology must be kept secret. We can't let the British not only seize it like the French warships, but also steal the relevant technology."

"Yes, Your Majesty, we need to do a good job of security. But the surface of Lake Ladoga is not calm either, so we can keep it secret there."

"It should be there. You read a lot. Do you know anything else about the French?"

"If it's a naval situation, I know mostly about shipbuilding, not naval warfare. If I were at sea, I would probably do what the French did, either running away at full speed or shooting at the enemy's rigging."

"The French navy, in terms of fighting spirit, is nothing compared to the army. Although we were taught a lesson by the Prussian army in the Battle of Rossbach, I also know that an army cannot always win. When the Grand Marshal was young, he was defeated in a small battle, but generally no one would care about it because he had never lost in a large battle."

Paul had a clear memory, and perhaps he was a little narrow-minded, as he even knew about the defeats Suvorov had suffered when he was young. Those battles could barely be considered combats, but were far from battles or campaigns.

"Your Majesty, you need to tell me this."

"It's okay, we just want to chat, and the Navy Committee thinks the design of this clipper is feasible. And building it on the shore of Lake Ladoga is conducive to confidentiality. The British know too much in St. Petersburg. How many spies do they have here? If we team up with the British, they will only use us. Some people damage the interests of the country for their own interests. Even just for me personally, a tsar is just the leader of a country. One day in the future, perhaps Alexander and his descendants will do better, and people may forget about me as a tsar. Before me were Peter the Great and the two empresses. As an emperor of all Russia, it is inevitable that I will be compared with them."

If those Austrians had not made random orders for their own interests, but instead advanced from both northern Italy and southern Germany and attacked the southern coast and eastern mountains of France, France might not have welcomed their new first ruler now and would have failed in the Second Anti-French Alliance.

Even the British did not expect that the Austrians would make stupid mistakes in such an inappropriate situation, which led to Paul directing his anger not directly at London, but at Vienna.

Paul missed the only chance in his life to become a great tsar, and his foreign policy also took a 180-degree turn. He first started the second armed neutrality, uniting the Nordic countries and Prussia to guarantee this agreement, and at the same time began to mobilize troops back home.

Now he has no plan to conquer India, but is preparing to retreat and accumulate national strength.

The direction of expansion is still mainly in the Caucasus. The troops that were withdrawn at the end of the Queen's reign are now mobilized again.

"Anyone who sits in this position will feel uncomfortable. I can understand that you are a loyal young man. Unfortunately, although you are a noble with a title, your status is too low and you are too young. When I am old and Alexander takes over, perhaps there will be room for young people like you to display your talents."

"Your Majesty, I don't dare to think that far. All I can do now is to do everything well."

"Yes, that's right. Do you see that over there? They are some young noble couples who have recently got married in Petersburg. Most of them are of similar age and are now enjoying the happiness of their marriage."

At this point, Solovyov thought that the Tsar might be trying to arrange a marriage for another couple, so he became very alert. However, before he could say anything, some other people came down the corridor.

Looking closely, it was Count Rostopchin, the dean of the Diplomatic Academy. Solovyov was most impressed by him because of his actions to bring warmth to Moscow.

But he now held the reins of Russian diplomacy and presented new texts, as well as diplomatic initiatives from France.

"Your Majesty, the new First Consul of France is ready to release more than 6800 of our prisoners of war, and to release Russian ships held in French ports."

"This Bonaparte, in addition to being an outstanding commander, also seems to know how to solve their diplomatic dilemma."

"I think it was Monsieur Talleyrand, the French foreign minister, who always asked for bribes. Your Majesty, what is different now is that Monsieur Talleyrand asked for bribes from the Americans, and the Directory did not have such confidence in him at that time."

"If he needs 20 rubles, we can give it to him. He is such a greedy lame jackal that we have to negotiate with him wearing a mask."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Count Rostopchin then left, and Solovyov continued to accompany Tsar Paul on his walk.

"It is spring now, let us go for a walk. My two unmarried darlings have been giving you a lot of trouble lately, Major."

"That's not a big deal, Your Majesty. Both Grand Duchesses are healthy and lively. It's inevitable that they'll indulge in some fun while they're still young enough to get married."

"Have the strawberries you planted sprouted yet?"

"At first, I just raised seedlings. I thought about raising them in pots, but there were some problems when transplanting them. So I kept them in the greenhouse where I sowed them and strictly controlled the temperature, which was conducive to the stable growth of the seedlings."

"You are always very careful and know a lot, but it's a pity that all your knowledge is in your head. It would be nice if you could share some of it with others."

"Your Majesty, knowledge cannot be shared, it can only be learned and taught." "That's true. In addition to the St. Petersburg Academy and the Moscow Imperial University, there should indeed be some higher education institutions. Education in our country is also very important. Even serfs should be required to be literate. People not only have physical strength, but also knowledge. People are the country's greatest treasure."

"Yes, sire, you often say that."

"There are so many people in Russia. If everyone has a smart mind and a chivalrous spirit of self-sacrifice, they will be a powerful force."

He didn't say much, but in his heart he was lamenting the things he had encountered since he ascended the throne, including the inspection around Moscow in 1798. He knew very well that the common people loved him from the bottom of their hearts, but he was afraid of this power.

He wanted to help all the people under his rule, but was afraid that their power would endanger the Russian imperial power. From a personal point of view, he was indeed much nobler than the average monarch. One could even say that he was stupid, cruel, and neurotic. Perhaps only the last item, because of the tremendous pressure on the throne of the Tsar, made him more neurotic and moody.

But in quiet moments like this, he is a benevolent monarch and a thoughtful one.

If he had not ruled a country as vast as Russia, with so many problems, it might have been easier for him. For example, if he had ruled Austria, France might have been in trouble by now.

"Your Majesty, but you are the protagonist on the stage."

"I know, Major. I am the main actor and I need to satisfy the audience. I heard from the three Dolgorukov brothers that you called General Massena, who ruined our cause, 'old soldier'?"

"Yes, Your Majesty, he was born as a commoner, but he was able to grow up to become a general of a legion in the French Republic. However, I only learned about this general through interrogating General Scherer."

"Yes, that was your achievement. You were just a captain at that time, and you wiped out Scherer's headquarters with a burst of gunfire. To be honest, the Knight's Medal of Malta is too little for this achievement. You are now a major officer and can be awarded the rank of commander."

"Your Majesty, I do not ask for medals. What you have given me is enough."

"Others are not satisfied with their current treatment, but you are actually satisfied now?"

Apparently Tsar Paul had heard the whispers of the nobles below. Many of them were dissatisfied with the status quo. Solovyov felt satisfied now, probably because his life was peaceful and fulfilling, and at a young age he had reached a position that many young officers dreamed of.

In the Empress's time, officers in the Guards had great potential among the royal family and the ladies of St. Petersburg.

Tsar Paul also hated that kind of atmosphere. He did not like Prince Potemkin, but he still took good care of Prince Potemkin's family members.

The problem of palace infighting in Russia can be said to be an old problem that has accumulated since Peter the Great.

During the Russo-Turkish War, Prince Potemkin did indeed take charge of the overall situation, allowing his subordinates such as Suvorov to do the work, leading to an unprecedented and glorious victory.

But in the process, he excluded Kamensky and sent the highly prestigious Marshal Rumyantsev to retirement, and finally obtained the qualification of commander-in-chief.

Such dramas are always present in Russia. After Paul concluded Korsakov's case, he had been paying attention to the infighting within the court. This internal friction put him under great mental pressure.

But he didn't have much choice, after all, these were the only people he could use.

At the same time, the long negotiations with France have begun. The French release of goodwill is also to prevent Russia from maintaining an attitude of leaning towards the anti-French alliance. This time the release of prisoners will be carried out in Baden and Württemberg, and then these Russian troops can leave France and return to Russia with their belongings and even weapons.

However, Rostopchin also realized a problem, that is, the eldest princess married into Württemberg, which is now controlled by France. This is a huge disagreement between the two countries.

He was prepared to pay Mr. Talleyrand in silver rubles, which would always allow the gentleman to offer a good price, and the Russians were accustomed to using bribes, it was just a matter of price.

Of course, there is a place where justice is done.

This kind of diplomatic bribery is also common in Europe, and an important instruction given by Rostopchin to the Russian representatives going to Paris was that Russia should also put forward its own demands in response to the demands made by the French side.

Sometimes the skills involved in diplomatic negotiations are no different from those in the vegetable market.

Tsar Paul took a walk into the garden again that day, but the temperature in the garden was not high and there were not so many people.

"Kutaišov, when is your son going to get married?"

"There's still some time left, Your Majesty."

"I see."

Paul called Kutaisov back again before he left the garden.

"Your Majesty, what else do you want?"

"I think we should have some good hounds in the palace, and also cats."

The Tsar himself might really not be afraid of a fight between cats and dogs. After all, he raised cats and dogs separately. The cats in the palace were raised for the queen and the female relatives, while the dogs were very useful when hunting.

After the Tsar ascended the throne, in addition to laws targeting humans, there were also laws targeting dogs. It was not like the five shoguns of the Tokugawa shogunate who did not allow the killing of dogs, but rather that the breeding of hunting dogs and all kinds of dogs was regulated in order to breed better offspring.

Apparently, he was quite knowledgeable, even going so far as to forbid speeding in horse-drawn carriages and stray dogs on the streets.

But this problem has not been solved in many places in the 21st century.
(End of this chapter)