Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

Chapter 170 How to solve the financial difficulties? (Part 027)
Russia's tight money supply has been a problem since ancient times, and it was most difficult during the Paul period.

Alexander is now sitting in his office in the Little Winter Palace, looking at the piles of official documents and really feeling a headache.

In fact, it was not a problem of backlog of official documents. During this period, there was a coup, a state funeral, and many etiquette issues had to be resolved. Alexander suddenly felt under a lot of pressure.

"No wonder my grandmother always wants to find a lover, and my father uses military training and talking to young women to comfort himself. The job of an emperor is hard for anyone to handle."

The inner monologue cannot be heard by the outside world unless someone can read minds.

But at this time, a servant from the inner court handed him a letter.

"How is this going?"

"Your Majesty, this is also your Majesty's family affair. It was arranged by Count Kutaisov before."

In Alexander's impression, although his father had a bad temper and was a little narrow-minded, he had very few known illegitimate children. He knew that he had an illegitimate half-brother, Semyon, who served in the navy, but he disappeared in the Caribbean a few years ago and there has been no news since then.

As for how this cheap big brother came about, Alexander didn't need to explain. With his quick mind but lazy thinking habit, he could see through it at a glance.

After he had a mother, Paul was still very loyal in this regard. Although he liked Nelidova more emotionally, if he really had any ideas, that lady would not have always been so slim.

"I know about this matter. If the child is really born, we must follow the wishes of our father."

Alexander felt that it didn't matter if his father gave him two more brothers or sisters. Compared with other European monarchs, Paul knew that there were risks in having children with his wife, so he turned to two maids. This was already acceptable.

Compared with his grandmother and grandfather even more distantly, Alexander looked at the separate order left by his father and the official document left through the Kurakin brothers, and signed it.

If the child survives after birth, he will be given the surname Musin-Yuriev, and each will own a village of 1000 serfs and an annual pension. Even Alexander did not notice that he and Constantine had already signed it in February, and it had to be reconfirmed after Paul's death.

"It's such a headache. I need a capable civil servant to be the Secretary of State."

Alexander thought of Prince Saltykov the Younger, who was very easy for Paul to use.

But the young Tsar himself hated this man. After all, he spoke in a different way and had a bad relationship with his confidants.

This confidant was Peter Volkonsky, the beloved nephew and successor of old Commander Solovyov. However, when it came time to hire someone, Alexander decided to keep him, but he still needed to consider whether to make him Secretary of State.

If Solovyov were here, he would use all kinds of knowledge to make jokes and make up for the loss. This would be a Petersburg crosstalk group.
"Don't think about it anymore. Let's go to the Tafred Palace. I want to see how Lisa is doing."

After all, he still has to rely on his wife to give birth to his children, and his wife is really pretty, but she is too thin.

"Her Majesty the Queen is pregnant. Should we invite Madam Naryshkina as well?"

"Of course, we are going to play mahjong too. I happened to send Solovyov to entertain the queen, so I want him to come and play mahjong in the evening."

Solovyov is massaging Louisa's feet at this moment, but it feels like he is massaging a kitten's paws. Louisa is really charming with her lazy look and dazed eyes. She really has human flesh on her body. It's just that I don't know why Alexander is with a Polish woman. You know, there are many people in the Guards who are crazy about the young queen. He himself looks more restrained and normal.

It was not surprising, as he had already cheated on her and was always around Louisa.

"Your Highness is about to fall asleep."

He untied his hands and covered Louisa with the blanket, only to find that little Natalia was sleeping again. The girl curled up at Louisa's feet like a kitten kept at home.

There are too many cat-like creatures among these Russian little ladies and noble girls.

The more reliable Natalia was feeling unwell today and took a leave to rest in the maid's room. Solovyov could only send Sofia Volkonskaya, who came from the Queen Mother, over.

"Sonia, His Highness has fallen asleep. Please stay here and watch for a while."

"Okay, let's go."

Sophia knew that her cousin Peter was coming over today, and she stayed here so that she could see her brother. The major probably wanted to avoid suspicion, after all, he was sent by the emperor himself and could not stay in the palace all the time.

These girls were a little drowsy when they were on duty. Louisa was afraid of the cold, so she was still using a steam device to heat the house at this time.

It was a little hot, and the girls had low physical strength, so it was not surprising that little Natalia and Sonya, who were still growing, took a nap.

After all, it was cooler in the yard. Solovyov went to the steamer to inspect the vessel. If Alexander came and wanted to observe the ship, he had to ensure that the steam engine was running.

Alexander was a very kind person. Since there were no donkeys in the Tauride Palace, he might as well get two.

Solovyov was overthinking it. When he went to check the steam engine, Alexander's carriage had already arrived.

The young Tsar actually brought his mistress to see his pregnant wife. The effect of this scene can be said to be very explosive. Of course, he still asked Maria Naryshkina to go to the palace arranged for him, and he went to Louisa first.

"Lisa, are you feeling better?"

"Your Majesty, why are you here at this time? I don't look good with my hair down."

"The sleeping angel is also very beautiful. If you unbutton your clothes, it will be like Giorgione's painting."

Alexander's hand followed the curve of Louisa's body and touched her belly, at least he did a good job on the surface.

Naryshkina now is not what she will be in the future. We will talk about it later. Her relationship with Alexander is getting closer and closer, and she is very favored, more than any other mistress Alexander knows.

And Solovyov, without having to fire the boiler, Peter Volkonsky came to the edge of the pond.

"Misha, His Majesty is calling you over."

Prince Volkonsky was a high-ranking general in the Imperial General Staff, and he had always been with Alexander. He came over and saw Solovyov debugging the machine. "Peter Mikhailovich, you don't have to come in person, just send someone else."

Solovyov was still very polite to the Prince Major General. After all, he was the nephew of his old boss and his status was much higher than his own. His personal visit was indeed beyond the standard.

"If it's official business, I'll send someone to call you over. This is the emperor's own business."

"Your Majesty's business?"

"Yes, if we want to play mahjong, we need someone to play with us."

"Then I don't have to go?"

"If we were to play with the emperor, we would just do it randomly. You are an expert, so you can explain this to the emperor."

God knows how this game became popular in the palace after Prince Bagration played mahjong on the night of the coup.

Solovyov himself doesn't like playing mahjong. After all, he doesn't like gambling. Even though he is a good card player, he doesn't like playing poker or mahjong.

But Alexander asked him to play cards, so he had to go.

To be honest, Alexander really loved to enjoy life, and in this respect he and the two queens were like a family. His unpretentiousness and sweet words were all said in social occasions.

As for meeting Alexander in person, Solovyov did not expect that he could bring his beloved mistress here openly.

This lady was indeed a beautiful, robust being, like a living Greek statue, and seemed able to make any appreciative male her intimate companion if she so desired.

The key point is that it's so big because Louisa is still quite big, and her physical condition during pregnancy also makes the gap between her and this couple too big.

"Soloviev, we came here to play mahjong. I know you know this, but we are not very good at playing cards, so you can introduce it to us."

In the mahjong set used by Bagration, the swastika tiles were replaced with gems, but Alexander insisted on making things more complicated and played mahjong in the original way, so this set made of ivory was created. The jewelry factory in Peterhof Palace also worked very hard and specially asked someone who could write Chinese characters to make the mold during the processing.

After talking about the rules of mahjong, it's time to start playing.

This kind of unfortunate job, which requires making timely jokes when the Tsar and his mistress are flirting with each other, is quite difficult and not something that most people can do.

It is no wonder that Count Stroganov, who values ​​family life and has always been inseparable from the Tsar, did not come today, and even his cousin who has always been by Alexander's side did not come.

In order to facilitate holding hands and being intimate, Alexander and Maria Naryshkina still sat next to each other. Especially at this time when the Tsar himself was at the upper house, was he going to give his lover a direct shot?

Peter Volkonsky was not here either. He had gone out for a walk with his cousin. There had been some signs of their free love affair since the end of 1800. The happiest people today were these modern people.

If she had fallen asleep like Louisa, she wouldn't have known that Alexander had sung such a piece, but now it's really lively here.

Solovyov sat opposite Alexander, while opposite Maria Naryshkina was Lieutenant General Count Tatyshev. He was 62 years old, and with such a high military rank, he was only the commander of a regiment.

Such an old man is here, and he is always in high spirits when he plays whist.
Solovyov didn't even understand Alexander's strategy for employing people. When he saw him like this, only two words came to his mind - "tyrant". He hoped that his temper would change only after he suffered some setbacks.

Of course, now at the table, you have to play the cards well.

It's just that old man Tatyshev plays cards in a completely random manner. You could say they are just playing randomly. There is nothing to be done about it. After all, these guys are all novices. What they play now is more like "Hot-Blooded Mahjong", with the main purpose being lively.

The more terrible thing is that there are stakes when playing mahjong. Maria Naryshkina can win the game no matter what, but the old lieutenant general and the young major can't, especially the old man who plays randomly.
"I hit the jackpot again!" This lady used to be a court maid and was brought up by the empress (because her pro-Russian father was hanged by the citizens of Warsaw), yet she spoke so boldly.

"Well, Mrs. Naryshkina, you win again. When playing cards, whether it's paper cards or dominoes, sometimes it depends on luck."

"Is it?"

"Your Majesty, you must believe me. There is a certain amount of luck involved in the game. I have always wanted to win, but the cards have been broken into pieces. This cannot go on."

Of course, he only lost 3000 rubles, but Alexander had made a big bet - of the four people at the table, only Solovyov insisted on walking around the streets, and the Tsar himself might not know as much about the prices outside as his sisters.

"You have to show your true ability, Solovyov. I am winning now, but you are an expert. It is impossible that this is all you can do."

"Your Majesty, that also depends on the card type."

"If you don't show your true abilities, I won't be able to enjoy myself today."

Speaking of which, the most similar thing between Alexander and Paul is that they like others to show their true abilities and are quite serious when entertaining themselves, even when they played cards before.

As for Mrs. Naryshkina, she even deliberately fell on the mahjong table and used her chest to win the game. Solovyov felt embarrassed when he saw it. Alexander's taste could not be said to be bad, because the lady was very beautiful, but what she did was too arrogant.

"Your Majesty, I will confiscate your property."

"What is 'house raiding'?"

"Your Majesty, that means to take everything out of the house. I accidentally said a Chinese word. This is when the Chinese emperor punishes criminals, he will seal their official residences and liquidate their property."

However, in order to make Alexander realize that, he needs to perform more explosively when playing cards.

In this deck of cards, the middle and white are represented by a double-headed eagle, a bull and a white board respectively. Only the white board remains the same. As for the bull, the reason is very simple. The patron saint of Taurus represents wealth. There are many Russian and Greek elites in the Third Rome of Russia. When carving the cards, Solovyov also took local factors into consideration. The wind cards are also represented.

"Well, you have to play well. If you win, I will reward you handsomely. If you lose, I will assign you a tough job!"

(End of this chapter)