Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

Chapter 149 006 Mikhailovsky Palace
The new palace was named after the Romanov dynasty's guardian angel, which translates to Mikhail.

Solovyov always believed that the reason he was chosen by Paul to join the Guards had a lot to do with his name. Paul himself was very influenced by the religious atmosphere. He was devout and a little superstitious. He could even often "predict" some things.

"Soloviev, how many years have you been with me since you invented the rifle?"

"Your Majesty, it has been more than three years since 1797, during which time I followed the Grand Marshal to Italy and Switzerland on expeditions."

"It's been quite a while. If you weren't so young, I might have sent you out to be the leader."

"Your Majesty, I am now a major in the Royal Guards. With this level of experience, I am considered to be promoted exceptionally, and I am also responsible for your daily guard duties."

"You've done a lot of things, and you've done a great job. I don't think I can just let you work by my side."

"Your Majesty, if you really want to transfer me somewhere, it will take at least until after this year."

Solovyov currently has no clear evidence. Although he knows that Paul was assassinated, he has no idea who the murderer is. Moreover, his job responsibilities and daily life do not give him much time to conduct private investigations.

Monitoring the movements of those young officers was the limit of what he could do.

"There are many places that need people. I am the emperor of all Russia. Everyone thinks being an emperor is a good job. It seems glorious, but it is also the most difficult job. No one talks about the reforms I want to promote openly. Ha! I don't know how many people are secretly colluding with each other. There are four battalions of guards on duty every day to protect my personal safety. How could anything go wrong?"

"Your Majesty, what if there were people like the Roman Guards or the Ottoman Sultan's guards? In Russia, in the past, during the time of Peter the Great..."

"Our Guards are not shooting troops. The soldiers are all good and the officers have all been selected. If you are worried about what happened in the past few months happening again, there is nothing we can do. Who knows what will happen. Well, you don't have to stay with me anymore. Go to Alexander and be an adjutant. You are more familiar with this area."

"Your Majesty, I will obey your orders, but I really do not want to leave your side."

After Paul heard this and knew what the young man was thinking, he changed his recent harshness and became as gentle as before.

"If you are worried, when we arrive at the new palace, you will finish your inspection and go to Alexander. The girls will not come. If you are free, you should take care of Maria and Catherine, who are unmarried. They are growing strawberries in the greenhouse of the Winter Palace. Take care of my daughter and granddaughter. Their smiles can make me happy, and they are also loyal to me."

But Paul didn't know that his most loyal guard officer sometimes stayed with his daughter-in-law.

"Your Majesty, I also need to complete the inspection of the new palace. In particular, many places, although they have been completed, even the paint is new. This is not good."

"Go ahead and do your best. Although you will be an adjutant again, I will order you to return to the Pavlovsk Regiment after a while. I hope you can become an outstanding general in the future."

Paul's grand appointment might mean that Solovyov would serve as acting commander of the Pavlovsk Regiment with the rank of major or lieutenant colonel, but he would also have to serve as Alexander's adjutant for a period of time, at least to make himself familiar to the crown prince.

The Tsar himself wishes to move to the new palace, and many officers will be sent out for training, while some will be transferred to become civil servants and diplomats. This task must be completed within the first half of the year.

Solovyov himself walked around the palace a few times. The new palace was a fortress structure with ditches dug from the canal on all four sides. It looked impregnable, but it also had many problems.

If it is wartime, or if St. Petersburg is under martial law, such a fortress arrangement is fine, but in normal times during a coup, it is obviously a place where one would be trapped in a cocoon.

Paul loved this place, which was once the summer palace of Empress Elizabeth Petrovna and his birthplace, so he built such a new fortress palace.

When the Tsar decided to build the new palace in accordance with his preferred architectural style, he referred to the official residence of Prince Condé, which he had visited during his visit to France. However, the color really makes it feel extraordinary.

When entering the palace, Solovyov saw the exquisite decoration. It was not as gorgeous as that during the Queen's time, but it looked a bit like the headquarters of the Knights Templar. Now Paul could be said to be a Don Quixote among monarchs. He wanted to give some benefits to his subjects, but also wanted the nobles to abide by the new moral code.

Even in this magnificent palace, for some reason, there was an eerie chill.

"It's actually not very safe to stay here now. It's not about the assassins."

"Mr. Major, do you think it's a bit cold here?"

"Yes, because it's a new palace and no one has lived there in the winter, the stove may not be warm enough, which is not good."

Solovyov led the two soldiers around and had a rough idea of ​​what was going on.

"Your Majesty's bedroom door, this location must be strictly guarded. As the last barrier, there must also be soldiers on duty behind the door."

The soldiers standing guard at the door usually had to take over their shifts every night after the Tsar went to bed. These people were the last line of defense in the palace to protect the Tsar himself.

"Mr. Major, we have already visited all the places, why are you still like this, with worry written all over your face?"

"Agapeev, promise me something."

"You've always been good to us soldiers. If it's your request, I will definitely agree to it!"

"You often stand guard at the emperor's door. You must protect his safety at all costs! I am going to be transferred to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. This palace is really unsettling."

"What kind of request is this? Protecting the emperor is what we soldiers are supposed to do. If anyone dares to come over, I will fight him to death!"

This guy loved Paul very much, and during several patrols, he was awarded the Third Class Order of Santa Anna by Paul himself for his alertness, which was one of the two medals that a soldier could receive at the time.

He originally received more pay than other Guards soldiers, and when he heard Solovyov's request, he agreed, which made the major very satisfied.

"You soldiers are more loyal to the emperor than us masters. After all, he is a rare monarch. At least he always wants to act according to the moral code he believes in."

"It's just that you are leaving, young battalion commander, and we are a little reluctant to let you go."

"Let's part ways in peace. I'll go to His Highness' place. When the Crown Princess gives birth, their family will move in. Then we can drink the soup from the same big spoon."

After leaving the palace, Solovyov returned to the Winter Palace and reported the security situation directly to Paul, and believed that the secret passage should be kept open at all times.

But Count von Paalen was also here today, and he said that according to the rules in the Winter Palace, the door between the Tsar and the Queen's bedrooms had to be blocked.

Solovyov felt puzzled when he heard this, but the count was Paul's confidant, and his suggestion would definitely be rejected. The door was blocked, or Paul and the queen were no longer sleeping in the same bed.

"However, His Majesty's safety is more important, Your Excellency. You should know that I have always been responsible for the palace's security. Although I will soon be with His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, I will ensure that these security risks are eliminated as soon as I am there!"

Count von Paalen was very patient. Anyway, this guy would not be in the Mikhailovsky Fortress, which removed one of the factors that the conspiracy group was most worried about.

He didn't care about this. As long as the officers appointed by Paul himself were transferred away, some of the remaining people were unfamiliar to him, some were planted by Tarejin, and some were simply instigated by the conspiracy group.

Among the core conspirators, only Count Panin's attitude changed. He believed that a constitution should be completed and Paul should be required to abdicate instead of regicide. Alexander was more open-minded and could accept the new constitution.

But others did not think so, especially after Paul's increasing suppression of the great nobles and pro-British factions, they felt that their interests had been harmed, and Panin's past incitement was very useful.

But after Zubov joined, what he has been brooding over is that when the Queen was critically ill, Paul held the Queen's will in his hands. He was the one who took the initiative to hand over the will, but quickly stepped aside afterwards.

The purpose of these people is to kill the king.

Solovyov was also supposed to accompany Paul to the Mikhailovsky Palace, but before the masquerade ball began, he finished his mission and came to Alexander.

"Father has transferred you to my place. That's great! You are very capable, and I also have some problems that I need your help with."

"Your Highness, I don't know what it is?"

"Misha, I think you know that there are other reasons why Lisa and I stayed in the Winter Palace. She hasn't been feeling well recently, just like when we had our two daughters."

It seems that this Crown Prince, who has always been meticulous, really doesn't know that he and Louisa are sleeping together.

"But I'm not a gynecologist. I can only remind Your Highness how to take care of yourself. And there are female officials, maids, and doctors in the palace. I can probably only help with the preparation of supplements."

"Yes, you and your father are helping Uncle Alexei with his business. I am a little abrupt, as you are still unmarried."

"Yes, Your Highness. I have another question. What should I be responsible for when I come to your side?"

"You can stay at the Winter Palace and take up your duties. If you have nothing to do, you can play with my sisters like you did in the past."

This is not an easy job, Solovyov thought, but it is also a good thing that it is easier to get close to Louisa here.

Alexander himself now returned to the palace frequently, but he still often stayed outside the palace and visited his mistresses, but he paid more attention to Louisa.

Being here actually means one thing, which is that I have more free time.

He began to suspect Count von Paalen, and he behaved very strangely in Paul's office.

If possible, he would launch an investigation. There were many rumors in St. Petersburg, and all kinds of true and false conspiracies would be heard by the secret police.

Prince Kurakin is in charge of this matter. The secret police can collect intelligence, but their analytical capabilities remain a question mark.

So he decided to start inquiring about the news in the palace starting from February.

After all, the safety of the Tsar and the Crown Prince has always been a major concern of the Guards and the Adjutants-at-Arms.

Alexander trusted him because he was a friend of Count Stroganov and the three Dolgorukov brothers, and was actually one of their own in the circle, but this was at work.

When I came back and saw Louisa, I discovered that she had gained some weight and was sleeping soundly in the recliner.

Solovyov did not disturb her, but called Natalia over.

"Go and cover Her Highness with a blanket. Her feet are exposed. Also, when you have time, ask the maid to massage the soles of Her Highness' feet and calves. These are the areas where she should be massaged." He even drew a picture for fear that the girl might not understand some of the terms in the human body structure.

He may be, like General Miloradovich, a "friend of women" in Petersburg, but in two different senses.

His senior brother is popular with girls, but he himself is more caring about people beyond sweet talk, which is much more important than sweet talk.

"I'd better let me do this. Those maids are too strong."

Natalia will be Louisa's long-term maid. She is young, but because Louisa favors her, she has stayed here from the time she was a young girl until she got married.

"Well, you need to know how to use your hands."

Solovyov told her, and seeing that the girl was quite smart, she learned it quickly.

"This isn't difficult. I'll try it on the sister of the Shakhovskaya family first."

"That one is also Natalia. You just rely on your young age and the sisters spoil you."

“Maybe they felt sorry for my mother.”

Natasha was an illegitimate daughter. Her mother abandoned her ex-husband and daughter and came to St. Petersburg. Moreover, Natalia's father, Lieutenant General Zagryazhsky, was already married.

This is not new in Russia, it happens quite often.

Her mother died ten years ago, but the lady who was the legal wife had always liked her very much, and sometimes good-looking children would be taken care of. Even though it was a situation that the lady hated very much, after seeing the child, she would raise and educate the child, and then send the child to the palace earlier than her own daughter.

However, her mother died last year, and she became alone. Her brother and three sisters all lived with their aunt. She was arranged to come to the palace, and because of her experience with her two mothers, Louisa always kept her by her side.

It was also because this girl was still growing up and always fell asleep first in a daze. After she fell asleep, Louisa had more free time.

(End of this chapter)