Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

Solovyov has two half-brothers. Anton is an adult and married, and at this time he is helping Pierre manage his business in Moscow.

According to the rules of Russian nobles who enlisted in the army, one person from a family could stay on their own land to manage the estate, while the rest had to join the army.

Although Anton still retained his officer status, he did not serve in the military.

This is not surprising, because during peacetime, many officers in Russia have become too redundant. Some have become civilian officials, some have returned home to manage farmland, and some have settled abroad. Even so, the number of officers is still too large.

So Vasily grew up, and now he had nowhere to become an officer.

Solovyov also knew that his two younger brothers had the same problem: they didn't like being officers, unlike their older brother who was a general in the army and a great hero to emperors, nobles, officers, soldiers, and commoners.

They are members of the Solovyov family, and their most notable characteristic is that they've all fallen into a money pit.

However, Vasily was not like Anton, who was only interested in profit except when it came to his wife; he could not be a typical capitalist.

So he came to his elder brother's place, hoping to find a job.

“Vasha, you are still young, and my work here is very demanding. All I do is patrol all day long, and I probably don’t have a moment to spare. Why don’t you go to Speransky’s place? Adela is my sister, and your brother-in-law is very capable. If you can learn his skills, it will be more useful than learning my skills.”

It's not that Solovyov's version is too advanced and doesn't apply to Vasily.

Although among his younger siblings, this boy was the most clever.

Solovyov also knew that he had been educated by a tutor in Italy, and that his father doted on his youngest son.

If he hadn't returned to serve in the military, he probably would have gone to study at some university in Italy, which would have made it so that the family would finally have a college student at that time.

Solovyov himself was not one, because he had always served in the military. Although he was the principal of a military academy, he did not manage school affairs and did not have any academic qualifications.

His experience was essentially self-taught. Even though he had mentors like Suvorov and Kutuzov, they didn't actually teach him much.

"Vasha, go to Siberia for some training. When you come back, go to university in Moscow, or wherever you want to go, I can arrange it."

Solovyov really has that ability. For example, Heidelberg was expanded by the old man of the Baden family. Although he is no longer alive, his grandson is still the Grand Duke of Baden and Louise's only brother. That's the connection.

According to his wife's line of descent, Stephanie is Eugène and Ortenberg's cousin, and he is Eugène's cousin as well as her older cousin.

Ah, don't make it too easy.

Vasily was also very studious, but he also inherited the Solovyov family trait of being obsessed with money. If he had worked for a banker in Paris, he probably would have become a banker by now.

Well, it's best not to do that, which is why Solovyov wanted his brother to go to Siberia.

"Siberia is too far away, and Father..."

“Your father and mother are there to take care of you, so you don’t need to worry. Everyone is born, grows old, gets sick, and dies. Like your father, he might live to be over 80. Don’t worry too much.”

Vasily was, after all, the youngest son, and spent the most time with his father.

Solovyov himself served in the military for a long time and was rarely at home, while Anton, after obtaining a public office, got married and moved out to live separately.

His longing and attachment to his parents is indeed a minor issue.

But I still...

“How about this, when Julia and Christian go to Italy, they can take care of Father.”

"If my sister and brother-in-law could go, that would be wonderful."

Vasily set off with Solovyov's letter to Speransky and a check for 2000 rubles.

Speransky's administrative reforms in Siberia improved administrative efficiency, and with the increasing number of people coming to Siberia to dig potatoes, effective management was indeed necessary.

He oversees not only civil affairs, but also the judiciary and commerce; he doesn't have much military involvement.

The Qing Dynasty would not come to the north to cause trouble for Russia, and Speransky also advocated peace. Therefore, the main foreign affairs here were still business in Kyakhta.

Previously, there was only one port of entry, Kyakhta. Now, Tarbagatai and Guangzhou have been added. The two land ports are because the two countries are adjacent, while Guangzhou is a different matter.

Vasily had to travel a long way, crossing the entire southern Russian steppe and then the Kazakh steppe, before he could reach Tomsk. By the time he arrived, it was already autumn.

The road was muddy, making it difficult to move forward for a while.

He was waiting here. Speransky was in the Siberian Governorate, and although he was always stationed in Irkutsk, he would also come to Tomsk.

Normally, this place is located before winter.

However, Speransky did not come to Tomsk this year due to the lawsuit in Kemerovo.

Vasily sat down and waited.

He's somewhat like the older brother; he likes to sit down and think, and he really enjoys self-study.

Despite being located in Siberia, Tomsk is a center for academic exchange, and it will remain so in the future.

There is also a library here, and even a lot of books that are rare even in Moscow.

The introduction mainly focuses on local history, as this area was, after all, on the edge of the Siberian Khanate.

Russia's territory is more like an inheritance from the Golden Horde, and even the Kazakhs, Khiva, and Bukhara that it wants to conquer are all in the core area of ​​Jochi's Ulus.

Vasily was more curious about the local trade situation.

He was even able to find numerous records of border trade in chronicles and other historical documents.

Although my elder brother is very farsighted, he may not necessarily know all the details.

Although Tomsk is in Siberia and far from Irkutsk, it is much closer to Moscow.

What he saw here was also a refreshing and novel account.

Even in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs archives, neither Pushkin, the elder brother's good student, nor Alexander Gorchakov knew such details.

The Qing side had no idea about such a sensational event as Ma Qi receiving Russian silver.

At that time, the deal with Lao Duozi was almost finalized, but Yongzheng himself made a fool of himself.

If the Qing Dynasty had been a Mongol Khanate, it would probably have gone to war with Russia.

However, since the Qing Dynasty had already taken control of the Central Plains, this would not be the case.

The solution was to resolve the issue through negotiation, but in the end, Ma Zhongtang took the money, while Prince Chaoyong Celeng was excellent at fighting but incompetent in negotiation.

So this is what the middle boundary looks like.

Vasily also saw a list of the main commodities traded along the border and even visited a warehouse in Tomsk.

This place stores a large quantity of Tangut rhubarb, a medicinal herb also purchased from the Qing Dynasty. Meanwhile, on the Speransky side, numerous warehouses were built stretching from Yekaterinburg, Kurgan, Tomsk, Kemerovo all the way to Irkutsk.

These warehouses supplied weapons to the Qing Dynasty in accordance with the treaty between the Qing Dynasty and Tsarist Russia.

Russia sells weapons, and in return, it mainly receives tea, as Russians also enjoy tea.

Even when his father wrote to Vasily, he thought that since their family was located at the border of Kyakhta, they should have a dedicated trading company.

Count Sergei felt that he was too old and lame to do it.

But the sons are still capable. The eldest son, although his stats are maxed out, isn't suited for this job.

So the two younger sons grew up one after another, and now they can come in handy.

During his time in Tomsk, Vasily, like his elder brother in his youth, focused on studying the situation in Kyakhta.

Very soon, very soon.

He wrote to Speransky in Tomsk, the Governor-General of Siberia, who was also his brother-in-law. In his reply, Speransky mentioned that he should come to Irkutsk after winter, as the ground would be muddy during this period. The roads in Siberia were not good to begin with, so he should be careful on the road.

And another issue is that many of the Buryat people, the "people of the forest" who did not relocate, still live here.

If Solovyov himself came, he would probably think of Khorchi and his thirty wives.

That would create a bit of a crossover.

When winter came, Vasily also left Tomsk and went to Irkutsk.

Here, he met the Speransky family, including Elizabeth, his daughter from his deceased first marriage, and his five children with Adèle.

"I really didn't expect that, Adela, you and Julia..."

"I guess it's been like this ever since I stepped into your house. Mishka always says that the Solovyov family is always full of people."

Whether it's their own male offspring or their married daughters, the family is thriving.

Even the eldest brother, who has an amazing memory, sometimes temporarily forgets a child because he has so many children.

"Vasha, you're not married yet. Is there a girl you like?"

Speransky was relatively free in Siberia, where there were no spies, and he also controlled the entire Siberian governorate, wielding considerable power.

However, he is preparing to further decentralize power, dividing the Siberian Governorate in two, which would also weaken the power of the local governors.

Although no one wanted to be the governor of Siberia, it was still a governorship, and it gave the emperor some prestige.

After Solovyov's mission, more Russian officials were willing to come to Siberia.

After all, there are two ports here. If they want to make money, they can just find someone to do business here.

Although the restrictions are mainly limited to ports, goods imported from China have a good market in Russia and can also be re-exported to European countries and the Ottoman Empire.

Although it's harsh and cold here, there's money to be made.

However, Speransky realized the problem. His original intention in decentralizing power was to improve administrative efficiency. Faced with these powerful nobles from St. Petersburg and Moscow, he could only resort to division and disintegration. Decentralizing power would at least prevent these places from having governors with too much power.

Although the governor of this region is unlikely to rebel, it would still be quite troublesome if he were to do something behind the emperor's back.

Speransky was even inspired by Solovyov's administration of several provinces in Crimea, and after the division of Siberia, he thought there should be a senior official above him who could control the governors-general of Siberia and the governors of the provinces.

The two ports of entry naturally need to be separated. Some people, who are not good at dealing with others, can only choose one port of entry even if they are authorized.

"Vasha, where do you want to go?"

“I think Kyakhta is better; my father reminded me to go there.”

“That’s good. Chinese emperor’s officials will also mention Misha. You are his brother, so you will probably receive some preferential treatment there. However, the only place to go from Kyakhta to the Chinese emperor’s territory is Maimai City, and you need a short-term pass issued by me.”

"Should we go to the capital of the Chinese emperor like our brothers did?"

"Then you'll need at least a passport for customs clearance. The main thing is the signature of the official in charge on the other side; I don't need to do much checking here."

Vasily also needed to learn a foreign language.

Solovyov's whole family knew how to do it, especially him, as the eldest brother.

Because Anton had been to China, he had also made considerable progress in this area.

Vasily was a bit less successful. Although his studies were excellent, life in Italy was different from being at home or in France. You could run into sinologists just by walking down the street.

When I go to Irkutsk, I'll need to learn another language, Chinese.

Fortunately, he had always done well in his studies, and Speransky soon gave him a position as a clerk in Kyakhta.

But he came here mainly to gain experience.

When Speransky's term ends and he returns to St. Petersburg, Vasily will probably go back to university or something similar.

But working on the front lines always allows one to become familiar with the situation.

For most Chinese merchants, reaching Kyakhta was considered their final destination, though a few might travel as far as Irkutsk.

There might have been many rules within the Qing Dynasty's territory, but in the Russian Siberian Viceroyalty, it was a different story.

As long as Chinese businessmen cross the border, they will find that on the Russian side, as long as you appear in a fixed location and Russian officials know your location, the control is relatively lenient.

But there are also some chameleons, which is a characteristic of Russia; they will also ask for some benefits.

However, compared to the corrupt practices in Qing Dynasty China, Russia had far fewer such practices.

But that tariff is really inhuman.

Even so, it was still much stronger than Britain's trade barriers. Russia's trade freedom only appeared to be limited because the country was so large.

If we're really talking about policy, it wouldn't be a problem for merchants from the Qing Dynasty to travel all the way to the heart of Russia to sell their goods if they wanted to.

In order to recover its losses after the war, Russia devised quite a few methods.

Vasily's work in Kyakhta is about to begin, mainly focusing on the import of tea and medicinal herbs.

In fact, this kid, who probably wasn't even an adult yet, had considerable power at the Russian border customs, overseeing a very important portion of the goods that could be cleared through customs.

There was no way around it; his elder brother was in Crimea, but his brother-in-law was the superior of these local officials. (End of Chapter)