Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

Solovyov returned to Persepolis once more and stood thoughtfully at the tomb of Cyrus the Great.

"Your Excellency, a message from Kabul indicates that His Highness has successfully completed his mission of contacting Muhammad Khan, and the two sides are currently holding talks at the Royal Palace in Kabul."

"It seems to be going relatively smoothly."

He glanced at Gorchakov. He didn't have that many capable men at his disposal. Many of the generals from his era had already become generals in charge of a region, or even marshals.

In Persia, he trained new recruits and, taking advantage of the fact that his eldest son-in-law's period of discipline was over, restored his military officer status and brought him to serve by his side.

The next generation of young officers still needs to be cultivated. The Navy was less affected by the Decembrist Rebellion, with only a few officers involved. The training and succession of their next generation of officers has also gone smoothly. The super crew of the "Azov" are now serving as captains on frigates.

In the army, however, there were still many old men. Solovyov felt that generals born before 1775 should gradually give way to younger men and they should retire and go home on pensions.

The main reason is that he knows the situation of these people. Over the years, they have relied on brute force, and their room for progress is really limited.

For this purpose, he also transferred Count Stroganov Jr. from the General Staff to serve as the commander stationed in Tabriz, to protect the transport line from the Caucasus to Isfahan.

There are many places where he needs people, so he can only consider the sons of these noble families who joined the army in their youth and have not made any mistakes.

But among these troublemakers, perhaps only their own sons are not on this path, and there's also this Sasha, who is in charge of discipline in Tabriz and has also repaired the main roads from Tabriz to Tehran and Isfahan.

The important thing is that he is rich and doesn't need to squeeze money from places to fill his pockets.

What was needed in Persia was to make the region prosperous. If construction was not an option, it would be best to at least exert some deterrent power.

Just like Yermolov's "Three Alls" policy in the Caucasus, Solovyov can still hear Shamir's Chechen light infantry complaining about it.

Speaking of which, Solovyov himself stationed troops on the Iranian plateau. Most of his personal guards were mountain people from the Caucasus, the light cavalry came from Georgia, the grenadiers were selected soldiers from the Caucasus, the light infantry were mainly Chechens, and only the artillery was mainly composed of Russians.

“My lord, only a benevolent conqueror like you could be so tolerant of everyone. We only have fear of General Yermolov, but we admire you.”

"Speaking of which, you bearded men, are you planning to settle down in Isfahan, or go back to your villages?"

“It’s still better to be at home. Although this place looks nice, Isfahan is not our home after all. Most of the people here are Shia, and their teachings are different from ours.”

"So, you're saying we have to go back to the mountains?"

“Yes, go back to the mountains. You haven’t been working so hard here lately, otherwise you wouldn’t be here to pay your respects at the tomb of this heretic king.”

"Ah, that makes some sense. I am indeed a bit tired, but I cannot go home yet, nor do I want my wives and concubines to come here."

"Yes, your wife is very beautiful, but it's not appropriate for her to show her face in public here in Persia."

Unfortunately, in order to quickly win over the Persians, Solovyov had to reach an agreement with the Grand Ayatollahs, as Islamic law was useful within the family.

Bringing Mihrima along might be an option, but considering the many years she's spent with her two children, more than ten in total, her daughters are starting to get married one after another, and she has grandchildren to take care of, she'd be indispensable as a helper at home.

Even Solovyov realized that the pretty young girl he had brought back from the Serbian warlords was now almost forty years old. Time really flies, and she was like a wild donkey running wild.

However, he is still in good health and can ride a horse for a long distance. If he continues like this, he will probably be able to lead troops into battle when he is about seventy years old, just like his mentor, Marshal Suvorov.

But if Nikolai were to personally lead the expedition at that time, that would be too much of a stretch.

Based on the current development, it should not be necessary.

Solovyov also knew that a local army needed to be established in Persia.

So now he is also drawing soldiers to set up a military camp in this desolate place northeast of Shiraz. What he wants to do is quite clear.

As a history enthusiast, it would be a disservice to my title as a soldier and historian if I didn't create an army of immortals when I went to Persia.

He really wanted to go to Egypt. Bolzoni was still getting paid by him and was doing just fine, so he was going to Egypt as his representative to do business.

Then, Solovyov hired him for many years, with a "bonus" for not damaging cultural relics, so he had to be careful when "robbing tombs" because of this.

There is now a Persian army in the military camp here.

Although they are no longer Ahura Mazda, "God is great" still has its uses.

It can boost combat effectiveness in a short period of time, especially improving the combat effectiveness of individual soldiers, but the more people there are, the less efficient it becomes.

This is why, despite their bravery and skill in fighting in the region, the Persian army was often defeated and exposed when faced with a stronger opponent.

After all, the Persian kings were never good leaders. Even Cyrus the Great and Darius the Great had their moments of weakness. Xerxes the Great initially seemed very powerful, but he also fell into depravity later on.

If the Romans hadn't always encountered unexpected events when trying to establish a presence in Persia, eventually becoming unable to do so, the Persian kings might have fled again, perhaps even faster than Darius III.

After all, if you can't beat them, you can only become a Running Man member.

However, a lion led by a male lion is definitely a very capable fighter, and is always stronger than a lion led by a camel.

As for these soldiers standing in formation here, many of them were handpicked from the Persian army, though some were mixed in with the rest.

Solovyov could not fully trust the former Persian army, so he arranged for the original deserters and a group of officers and soldiers selected from the Caucasus garrison to join and lead the army.

Judging from the formation, it was indeed much better than the scattered and disorganized Persian army of the past.

The Prussians' foolish methods for rapidly building up military combat effectiveness were still effective.

Although these Persians wore European-style uniforms, the hats or headscarves they wore revealed the characteristics of this army.

There was no requirement for uniformity; the soldiers were selected from various parts of Persia, mainly Shia Persians and Azerbaijanis, but also included soldiers from other ethnic groups.

There were even some remaining Zoroastrian followers within Persia, who were separately organized into light infantry, except that they wore the same headdresses as the Immortals depicted in the murals.

Moreover, when Solovyov organized the army, he intentionally eliminated divisions. Apart from Zoroastrians being incorporated into several companies of light infantry, the main grenadiers and cavalry were mixed together.

Controlling this army would also be easier. Although some people had objections to this arrangement, the Book of Kings clearly states that this book was completed after Persia had been Islamized, but in China it was the early Song Dynasty, and Zhao Er had not yet started writing it.

The poet may have been born at the wrong time, but the Persians still knew what he taught.

Therefore, the Persians and Azerbaijanis did not have the same level of aversion to the content of the Persian Wars as they did in India.

Their commander respected all faiths, was friends with the religious leaders, wore a Persian robe during his rule in Isfahan, and also wore his green marshal uniform in the Russian army.

When he arrived at the army, he didn't have a big beard and was dressed in the clothes of the Persian army commander. However, because he was over fifty years old and still looked rather thin, the clothes didn't fit him very well.

It may look comical, but that doesn't stop him from being the commander of this army.

As for his speech to the soldiers, he didn't say much.

The core message is to protect the Persian people, their traditions, and their beliefs.

Of course, there was also a subtext: since there was no king in Persia, you must pledge allegiance to the Tsar.

Although Solovyov had the power given to him by Nikolai, he had no intention of turning this place into his own private domain. Being a viceroy on the Russian frontier was still a dangerous position, and even though he was well-liked, he still had to worry about being attacked behind his back.

Who knows, one day someone might try to climb the social ladder by stepping on him.

Among his friends were those who disagreed with him politically; Nesherrodi, for example, did not support his sweeping reforms in Persia.

He abolished slavery, repaired roads, respected all faiths, and reorganized the Persian army, which, under the command of Russian officers, now numbers 80,000.

But this seems to be setting an example for Nicholas, and even the truly conservative nobles are now starting to worry.

If Solovyov has finished what he did in Persia, what will he do to them in return?
Solovyov even improved upon the Iqta system inherited from the Arab world by the Persian Empire. He would often suggest that the Grand Ayatollahs and secular officials sit down together to discuss the issue of land ownership.

Because the past Persian Shahs were so immoral, the participants even unanimously agreed to distribute the land to the farmers. There was an upper limit to the land that the Bai lords could donate to the mosque. Once the upper limit was exceeded, the land would be transferred to the almshouse for laborers to cultivate, thus forming a cycle of land distribution.

Since Solovyov had only been in Persia for a few years, at least his land transfer scheme was still cyclical.

Even through the clergy, a land cycle can be formed, because the land and property of the rich and the poor are always donated to the mosque.

The beauty of his cycle is that it can be passed on, which is a very good method at this stage when priests are still able to exercise self-control.

But Solovyov could guess what would happen in the future.

He was also distributing land to the soldiers of the Persian army. Each soldier would receive a plot of land upon retirement. If he had a son who joined the army, it could be inherited as land. If he did not have a son, but had a daughter who joined the army, it could also be land.

However, if a son or son-in-law does not serve in the military, the land will be reclaimed after his death, but other property will remain unaffected.

However, even Solovyov himself was unsure how it would turn out once it was actually implemented, but his method was still useful.

At least the troops that are organized now are in high spirits, and there are rewards for fighting bravely on the battlefield. Whether they retire or die in battle, they are compensated.

Because the Persian land system was to be completely destroyed, this system was easier to implement.

When Solovyov himself wrote a memorial to Nicholas, he also mentioned the situation in Persia at that time and suggested that a credible envoy be sent to Persia to see the achievements of the past few years.

Nikolai trusted his teacher very much. When he was about to send an imperial envoy, he originally planned to send Arakcheyev, but now that Arakcheyev was old and sick, he had to find another person.

Then, the combination he sent out was also very strange.

"Vorontsov and Pushkin?"

"Yes, Mikhail Sergeyevich, His Majesty has sent the two of them."

"What a strange combination!"

Solovyov knew that Pushkin had a strange fetish for beautiful women since he was a child.

For example, he used to peep at Louisa and Anna bathing in the pond.

Back then, he was just a child.

Later, when he was with her, he even wrote a poem praising how beautiful Mihrima was, calling her "the pearl of the Balkans."
In Langeron, he almost became someone's son-in-law.

When he went to Vorontsov's place to do business, Vorontsov wanted to use this opportunity to improve his relationship with the poet so that someone could speak well of him to Nikolai.

After all, Pushkin, who was with Solovyov, was Nikolai's childhood friend, classmate, and close friend. Solovyov even had him recite poetry at his wedding.

This guy got involved with Vorontsov's wife and even wrote poems mocking the count himself.

It was precisely because of his relationship with the Emperor that Vorontsov had to think twice before reporting him, which prevented him from being exiled to some place for supervision. In the end, he was sent to China to deliver Russian books for cultural exchange.

Under the Daoguang Emperor, Pushkin became much more docile. He looked down on the Eight Great Hutongs and preferred noblewomen and young ladies in the throes of first love.

So much so that even his mentors, Solovyov and Speransky, had to keep an eye on their daughters to prevent them from being charmed into falling in love by this sweet-talking guy.

Fortunately, after meeting his destined Goncharova, he became much more well-behaved and stopped flirting.

He hasn't changed his habit of being sarcastic and sharp-tongued. Even though he knows that his father-in-law, mother-in-law, and teacher are old acquaintances he's known for thirty years, he still can't help but be sarcastic and sharp-tongued sometimes.

It was only because he was much more obedient now, and it was official business, that Vorontsov was able to tolerate him and come to Isfahan with him.

Pushkin was extremely excited, and the Chinese emperor, Daoguang, praised him highly.

Previously, only Tsar Nicholas was compared to the ancient sage Jizha, so Pushkin was relegated to the same table as Li Bai.

It's this strange Russian habit that Pushkin went far beyond what Li Bai did.

As for what will happen after they arrive, Solovyov himself has no idea. This skilled fighter, while capable, is also a troublemaker. (End of Chapter)