Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

Chapter 195 007 Imperfect Plan

The navigation conditions in spring were not good. When Solovyov was on the road, he could see ice everywhere. He couldn't even take a big ship, so he had to go ashore near the Gulf of Riga.

During this trip, after finding a vehicle at the post station, he also stopped by Count Bobulinsky's estate to see the situation of the factory.

Although it is just a pen-making factory, with its current scale and the fact that all the workers are freelancers, it still makes people feel a sense of accomplishment.

But he had no time to stay here. After spending the night here, he would go to Gatchina the next morning.

It was normal for Alexander to arrange a meeting with ministers in the Imperial Village, especially diplomatic officials returning from abroad. Sometimes they would meet the Tsar and also the Empress Dowager.

Solovyov actually knew that he was not liked by the Queen Mother. It was because he had taken good care of these young ladies that he was not included in the list of people to be sent abroad.

Now that he is here with Alexander, from the coup to his subsequent work, he is still respected a little, and the empress dowager will not drive away the officers appointed by the tsar because of a trivial matter.

In the past, Gatchina was a training ground. Now that Paul is gone, the place has to be replanned and rebuilt according to the Queen Mother's request.

When Solovyov saw the changes here, he knew what kind of behavior the Empress Dowager had pretended to have in front of the Empress and Paul in the past.

People in St. Petersburg didn't know where the rumor came from. It was probably from the Finance Committee. There was a huge gap between the Queen's expenses and the Queen Mother's expenses. Even the savings of the Tsar and the Queen were partially used to fill the gap with the Queen Mother.
Judging from the furnishings of the palace, this possibility cannot be ruled out. Korsakov spent 1200 rubles to bribe Count Kutaisov and Madame Chevalier, and Louisa's annual expenses were 15000 to 20000 rubles. Compared with the Queen Mother's pomp, this is nothing.

Some of the servants on Gatchina's side recognized the former captain of the guards and the "inventor" who served Paul, and they also came forward to greet them.

"What are you doing?"

"Master Major, we need to redecorate Her Majesty's garden. When our old emperor was here, this place was too plain, especially this garden. When the masters come to Gatchina, this grand occasion must not be lost!"

"That's good. At least Her Majesty the Queen Mother likes it, and the Emperor comes here often. The palace still needs to be more particular."

He could only say this and could not reveal his true thoughts.

Alexander was also at court, but he was meeting with the Queen Mother Maria to receive representatives of the nobility who came to pay their respects. The Tsar himself, in order to avoid embarrassing situations on such occasions, sent Louisa and the children to the Alexander Palace.

Except for the coronation ceremony, Louisa seemed to be non-existent in the court. She was only ranked second in the court, and the one ahead of her was not the queen.

However, given the flattering nature of Russian nobles, they all knew who they should please. The Queen Mother particularly liked to interfere in domestic and foreign affairs, and was also planning her next marriage to marry her third daughter Maria to Saxe-Weimar, but the final agreement between the two parties had not yet been reached.

Alexander himself had no say in this matter. Although Maria was not his favorite sister, he had heard that the Crown Prince of Saxe-Weimar was a weak man. Although Maria would definitely not be bullied if she went, whether she could be happy was also a big question.

Compared to his mother who wanted to gain benefits for her family in Württemberg through marriage and diplomacy, Alexander cared more about the interests of Russia and the happiness of his sisters.

The advantage of him being a sister-con is that although he has a special relationship with Ekaterina, he also takes care of his other four sisters. As the eldest brother, he is very capable in this aspect.

Alexandra was lucky enough to marry William, and the matter was resolved, but future events were difficult to deal with.

Maria's marriage also had to take into account the fact that Saxe-Weimar was close to Berlin and the attitudes of Prussia and Austria towards France. In diplomacy, Alexander appreciated some of Napoleon's initiatives at this time, but when the First Consul of France sent troops to the Republic of Southern Italy, this move was a bit embarrassing, although this was only done on the basis of the peace treaty with Austria and had nothing to do with the British.

But the British will definitely not give up in the future. During the days when Alexander came to Gatchina, the Treaty of Amiens was about to come into effect. He could only wait and see what would happen there.

However, he still had to meet with diplomats returning from abroad and officials coming to Gatchina from local areas.

"Major Solovyov, come here for a moment."

"What's my ranking in the audience?"

"The last one this morning. It's just a coincidence. The Emperor loves both of them very much. He has to go back to Alexandra Palace in the afternoon these days. He feels uncomfortable if he can't see the children for a day."

"Thank you. This is for you. If there is any movement from the emperor, don't forget to tell me."

"Mr. Major, we all know that your father, Baron Sergei, is good at business, and you are good at tinkering with new things. Your family is rich, but you can't give us money like this."

Although it was only a few silver rubles, the servants knew it. Such a wealthy master came to do serious business, so they couldn't take too much.

When he met Alexander, the Queen Mother was also there. After he saluted, Alexander spoke before he could even open his mouth.

"How are you doing in Sweden, Solovyov?"

"Your Majesty, I only hurt my arm. It won't affect my activities in Sweden."

"I would like to thank you for this matter, and so does the Queen."

Solovyov could only stand there now. With the Queen Mother here, he couldn't say anything.

"How is the plan you reported to me in the Winter Palace before you set out now being implemented?"

"Your Majesty, although the trip to Finland was postponed for some reason, I started from Stockholm in late January and walked along the coastline all the way to Malmö. I gained a lot along the way. In Malmö, I also bought a French newspaper published in Copenhagen and collected some intelligence at the Swedish naval base."

The Queen Mother actually had a lot of opinions about the Swedish King Gustav. She was unwilling to leave when listening to the report. In addition to her enthusiasm for intervention, there was also Alexandra's original engagement.

"What do you think the situation is like in Sweden?"

"Their army is not as good as that of Charles XII, and I can feel that the Guards are slack. The dispute between the Cap Party and the Top Hat Party has not been resolved yet. The domestic economy is still prosperous, but most of the money has fallen into the hands of the masters, which is the same everywhere. I can also see that the Swedish navy warships are now poorly maintained because of their tight military budget."

"Then there's nothing good going on?"

"It's not that there isn't one. His Majesty the King of Sweden has an heir. This may be the only good thing. But I have also heard a lot of rumors. Although they cannot be conveyed in diplomatic letters, they are related to King Gustav III. You know, Your Majesty."

Although Alexander was not able to study in depth, he was very smart and understood things quickly. He knew that people had been questioning Gustav IV's bloodline for a long time.

With the Empress Dowager beside him, Solovyov could not go into too much detail and could only talk about the important things. "Well, now that you have returned to the team temporarily, come with me to Tsarskoye Selo. Mother, we have important things to discuss, so we cannot stay here with you."

The Queen Mother also nodded and called the maid over, saying that she was going back to make beads for her granddaughter.

Alexander brought two horses. If he wanted to go horse racing, it would not be appropriate to choose a rider who was too outstanding. Solovyov was from the Guards. Although he was skilled in horse riding, he was no better than Alexander, who had time to practice dressage.

"We'll talk on the road on horseback, and it'll help keep it secret."

But when Solovyov came in, he had not eaten, but this was not the first time he had been hungry.

When he led the Guards to the Mikhailovsky Palace, he did not have even a piece of bread to eat for a long time until the crisis was finally resolved.

Alexander did eat some dried fruits to fill his stomach. He sometimes liked to play tricks on people.

"Now that we are on the road, you can tell me about it. It is not convenient for you to talk about military plans in front of the Queen Mother."

"Yes, Your Majesty. I think we should adopt a two-pronged attack. During the freezing period, we need to confirm the ice route from the Courland Peninsula to Gotland Island. I measured 150 versts from the map. If the Cossacks and Hussars take bold actions, they can quickly control Gotland Island. Then this detachment will take advantage of the thickest ice period during the freezing period and boldly attack southern Sweden."

"You are going to attack the heart of Sweden from the ice, so what about Finland?"

"This requires us to mobilize troops from St. Petersburg and Vyborg and march towards Helsinki and Turku, so as to control the transportation lines in a short time and threaten the Åland Islands. The ice period here is longer, so we can quickly control the islands and threaten Stockholm in a short time."

After listening to it, Alexander felt quite satisfied.

"Also, I have prepared an incomplete plan. I also took some notes on the way there and back. If I want to complete the entire plan, I need someone who is familiar with the situation in Sweden and Finland to further complete it."

"Well, I will accept this plan first. I am thirsty after hearing so much talk. Let's go to the Alexander Palace, which is the palace that my grandmother built for me when I was still the Grand Duke."

His tone showed that even though the Queen was no longer around, he still spoke with respect.

Although in fact, Alexander did not fully agree with the actions of both his grandmother and his father.

This actor has to act in front of everyone.

Alexander selected good horses. After returning to the Alexander Palace, he took Solovyov for a ride around the palace.

"Your Majesty, you don't need me to be here for security."

"I know, but you need to ride more horses!"

Only after this whole ordeal with him did Solovyov get the chance to step down.

Alexander had absolute trust in his aide-de-camp, who saved his brother, protected Louisa on the night of the coup and took the lead in swearing allegiance to him. He even took care of household chores and followed the doctor's instructions under the delivery table to save his wife.

While dining, Alexander also explained the palace where he had only lived for a short period of time.

"This is a good place to raise children. The Queen also likes it here. Lisa likes quietness. As long as the Queen Mother doesn't come to this palace, it's fine. You can see that, right?"

"Your Majesty's affairs are the affairs of the state, just as Louis XIV said."

"That's what I think, so, although someone has told me about my mother's affairs many times, I don't intend to intervene. The passage over there, leading to the nursery, was also built when my grandmother was still alive."

He was now introducing his own mansion, but no one knew what he wanted to do.

Solovyov also saw a tapestry in the corridor here, which was a picture of Queen Marie Antoinette of France with her children. The composition was obviously by Madame Le Brun, who was the queen's close friend and personal painter.

The lady has now embarked on her journey home, which is only possible after peace comes.

However, the outside world often cannot figure out what Alexander is thinking.

What he set up here was just a working lunch at noon. Compared with Paul's time, it looked just as simple, but it was more exquisite.

"I read your letter last month. You mentioned making canned food. What do you want to do specifically?"

"We still import high-quality iron materials from Sweden, but the only difference is the shelf life and the material of the can. If it's a glass jar, how can it keep fresh? And what ingredients can we choose?"

"Why don't you start with the pickled lard and the pickles?"

What Alexander said is quite reliable, and both of these things are easy to preserve.

And Solovyov also knew that a lot of homemade canned food was prepared in Eastern Europe for winter storage.

"Your Majesty, that's a good idea, but I didn't expect you to notice this."

"Although we won't be able to eat these things here, Bekov often brings his own snacks, so I still know a little bit about them."

"That's the Hercules rickshaw driver?"

"Yes, it is him! I saw that he was extremely strong and could drive a carriage by himself, so I hired him to the palace."

"No wonder. He's very strong, but he also eats more than others."

"I just like his strengths. He is also very straightforward. It is pleasant to get along with such a person."

(End of this chapter)