Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

Chapter 211 An unexpected visitor to Vienna
The two girls came to their mother, and only the little Sophia stared at Solovyov with her big eyes, which was very cute.

"You seem to like children very much, but you are not married."

"I have always had to look after children at home, both the older and the younger. The older one was sent to a girls' school, as you know."

Solovyov could finally relax, although he seldom visited the prince's home, mainly because of the big gap in status between the two sides, a huge gap between the nobles of St. Petersburg and the gentry of Ryazan.

Now that he is sitting here, his status is relatively equal.

"But you are not married yet, do you look like one too?"

"Mom, there are some things that can't be said casually."

The older child interrupted what his mother was about to say and began to bow to her.

"Sorry, Mom, I guess my tone was wrong."

"It's okay, Kadisch, your judgment is correct, there are some things that cannot be said."

Even though this hostess is already in her thirties, she still has some charm. No wonder there were rumors about her being Prince Potemkin in the past.

"Mom, if something is said wrongly, it's a matter of honor. I heard that Brother Mishka dueled with the theater's secretary for Sister Julie."

"But that Venetian is an enemy, and I am a guest in your house, Katya."

Solovyov sometimes found this girl interesting. She had finally adjusted her gait, but she was always interfering in family affairs. However, she always spoke at a relatively appropriate time.

"Then I heard that the man was dead."

"Oh, just a nobody. I also want to thank Princess Yusupov for her help. She has done a lot."

"How is Tatyana? The sisters used to come to my salon, but Vasily always got into trouble with the Emperor, and that's how he came to Dresden."

"The Princess is very nice, but a lot of things happened in Petersburg. I can't finish talking about them now. But that Swiss guy, he should have a chance to marry Catherine, the daughter of the Princess's first marriage."

"That's a good thing, but the girl from the Potemkin family is still too young. She has to wait for two years. 16 is relatively early to get married."

The Princess continued speaking, this time without being interrupted by her eldest daughter.

"If I were in Petersburg, I would go and bless them. When I was with the Emperor, he actually dueled with someone, causing us, the aides, to spend a lot of time and effort to help him. Otherwise, he would have been driven to the mountains of Switzerland sooner or later."

"Speaking of Switzerland, we're traveling there tomorrow, and also to Italy."

"To Italy, it's nice there, ma'am."

The Princess's wife chatted like this because there were few visitors these days and she seemed a little lonely.

Even when she met a young officer who came to visit her, she was able to talk for a long time because he was an acquaintance in St. Petersburg.

"So we can still go back to Petersburg?"

"But I think some means are needed. I remember that Vasily Vasilyevich has quite a few connections. His Excellency the Prince is not only a retired lieutenant general, but also a retired senior civil servant."

"And it was the son of the former Army Commander-in-Chief, Prince Klimsky, who awarded your father the medal."

“I didn’t exist at that time.”

You know, Baron Sergei is the adjutant of Prince Klimsky's eldest son-in-law. No wonder he is always treated as one of their own. But Solovyov doesn't know the specific relationship between Prince Vasily and his father.

"If your father hadn't been injured in the leg, he might be a quartermaster now. He has the ability to do so, Misha."

The door was open and Prince Vasily was standing there, having returned earlier than expected.

"Good afternoon, Dad. You're finally back."

"Dad!" Sophia threw herself into her father's arms, while Ekaterina was obviously more polite and even took the place of the servant to take his hat.

"They are all good children, Katish. They are out having fun with their sister, and their father has a visitor who wants to discuss business."

Solovyov saw a thin figure in white clothes. At first, he could not see clearly because of Prince Vasily Dolgorukov's sturdy figure. When the prince flashed around, he was also very surprised and stood up directly from the sofa.

"His Royal Highness, Duke Teshen, hello."

"An adjutant of the Imperial Guards with green eyes, you are the 'Inventor' Solovyov, right? Although you are not of high rank, you are well-known in the officer corps because of your role in the outpost battle of the Battle of the Trebia River, where you set fire to the village, and the capture of General Scherer alive."

"Your Highness has never seen me before, yet you know me so clearly."

"It's mainly because of this particular battle that it was so impressive."

Archduke Karl came to Dresden. Solovyov didn't know what he was going to do, but he was not in Vienna, so something must have happened there.

"Let's not talk about that. We were scheduled to reach Dresden tomorrow, but we didn't get delayed on the way. It's a miracle. If there had been no French at the Gotthard Pass, we might have achieved complete victory by now."

Although Karl said this, it still seemed a little strange. Anyway, although he was not from the same generation as the Austrian veterans, and he also had epilepsy and was physically weak, as the most outstanding commander of the Austrian army, he was still quite popular among the entire army.

"But there are no ifs, Your Highness. We also know that you have made great efforts to ensure the safety of the Alpine Pass."

"Fortunately this was at the home of a Russian friend and not at the Viennese court."

Carl's sitting position was not so particular. Apparently, having been in the army for a long time, he didn't pay much attention to things in social occasions. He was more concerned with discipline and convenience.

"You were trained by Prince Suvorov, and his evaluation was fair, but what can I do?"

It seemed that he was in a hurry on the road and had not eaten, so he grabbed the nuts on the table and took them in his hands one by one, but he only ate a few. It was obvious that he was still very restrained.

"In a war, we should win first and then consider other things."

"But this will always be disturbed, Your Highness. The monarch and the commander-in-chief sometimes have different opinions." "And now, it is the same."

After hearing what Archduke Karl said, Prince Vasily and Solovyov probably guessed that another group of ministers in Vienna were causing trouble.

As Minister of War and Navy, Chairman of the Military Committee, Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights, Austrian Field Marshal, and the third brother of Emperor Francis himself, his other brothers supported him, but it was difficult for him to get anything done.

Because of this, he now became depressed, always troubled by depression and epilepsy, so he decided to leave Vienna and take sick leave.

At this moment, one can see that he looks tired, but his mental state is still good.

"So now that you have come to my place, Your Highness, you should also enjoy your life."

"And to meet my cousin Marie-Thérèse, she is very pitiful and needs someone to look after her. We may have some common problems. And if we go to the countryside, we can hunt, ride horses, and relax. Prince Vasili, you have always been so hospitable and kind-hearted. This rest should be very pleasant."

By the way, he himself never mentioned that he was here for a blind date, and the matter with his French cousin was only known by Emperor Franz himself and his younger brother Archduke Joseph, one because he needed to know as a monarch, and the other because Archduke Joseph was probably the most reliable of the brothers.

During the dinner, Archduke Karl did not have the pomp and ceremony of the Austrian royal family. Even with the hospitality of Prince Vasily, it was just a simple dinner.

Moreover, Archduke Karl is fine when it comes to talking about military affairs and general courtesy negotiations, but when it comes to in-depth discussions, there is nothing to praise about him so far.

However, he will stay there for a while, and then go to the small manor where his cousin lives in seclusion nearby. He has a lot of work arrangements during this period.

"Misha, you should stay too. My two sons have gone to Strasbourg, France. You can come and help me with some things."

"Sir, I am willing to serve you."

"You are indeed quite promising. Seryosha has a good son. I have known your father since I was in the Selenge Regiment. He was an adjutant. He may not be good at fighting and not brave enough, but he is good at military supplies. We have never been at a disadvantage in Crimea. But you, as a son, although you are also an adjutant, are different from your father."

Solovyov only knew that his father had some relationship with the prince's family, and he also knew Prince Krimsky's family lineage, and now he also knew about their friendship during the Russo-Turkish War.

"Vassily Vasilyevich, I am very grateful to you, but I have to go to Stuttgart and Paris to take up my post."

"Ah, that's okay. After His Highness Karl returns, we can go to Paris together. I also want to travel to France, Switzerland, and Italy. Now is a peaceful time, so I should go out more."

The prince was in a good mood and even dug out an old military uniform, but it didn't quite match his current body shape.

"You were in the Semyonovsky Regiment?"

"Yes, I served as a staff major there, and was the major of the second battalion, which is quite different from you, the chief major."

Seeing that this boy was promoted as an exception based on his military merit, Prince Vasily remembered that his father, at the age of fourteen or fifteen, bravely took the lead and made great contributions in the siege of Perekop when the entire Dolgoruky family was stripped of their military ranks. He liked him even more.

"But the old rank is no longer in use. When I was the commander of the 1st Battalion in the General Regiment, I used the new rank."

"Yes, times have changed."

And after that, according to the usual practice of these activities, we would go to the hunting ground after a few days.

Fortunately, Dresden is different from inland Russia. The weather here is still very good, and there is more time for hunting, especially for hunting wild boars, deer and wild ducks, and taking dogs with you.

It's more or less like a real-life shooting game, except the dog is catching the duck instead of bringing it back with its claws.

As for his identity, it was inconvenient for him to ask more questions. After all, he had just escaped from the table with the children and his military rank was still here.

Of course he also noticed that Ekaterina was always paying attention to him.

"Brother Mishka, you have been in the palace the whole time. You should have a chance to meet Her Majesty the Queen, right?"

"Uh, yes, what's the problem, Katya?"

Although he is an expert in this area, he even knows what material the pajamas that Louisa likes to wear are made of.
Then there is the question of the child. She probably met Louisa when she was a child and was very impressed.

"Her Royal Highness loves reading. Do you know what books she reads?"

"I'm not very clear, but I know from Her Majesty Maria that Her Majesty likes history, geography and philosophy, as well as poetry, drama and novels."

"No wonder she is so knowledgeable and has such a good temperament. But I just can't read these books. I prefer music scores and paintings."

Her hobby is similar to that of Elena and Maria. If she could return to St. Petersburg and become Louisa's maid, she would probably like them as soon as they meet.

"Your Highness would like this, too. I have seen the portraits that Madame Lebrun painted for Her Highness the Queen."

"That lady also painted a portrait of my mother. I also liked Sister Julie. At that time, she often brought me snacks made in the French immigrant area."

Once the child gets familiar with others, he becomes quite talkative and he also likes macarone, which is the original Italian macaron.

It’s not surprising. After all, he came from her “hometown” and they knew each other. He was the older brother of her pen pal and best friend, so it was inevitable that they would chat more.

On the other hand, Archduke Karl was chatting with Prince Vasily about other things, mainly about the recent situation of the "Little Cake Princess".

This kind of thing is unexpected, but it is also reasonable. Archduke Karl is now conducting his marriage with his cousin in secret, so as not to irritate the French in public. After all, Marie-Thérèse's identity is too sensitive, and if the marriage is made public, it will be regarded as an unfriendly move by the French.

Austria was not fully prepared at the moment, and Mark also interfered with Archduke Karl's work, making him feel exhausted and even want to withdraw from public life and rest in his fiefdom of Teschen.

However, as the only capable royal general of the Habsburg royal family, he had no way of resting himself and recuperating was unlikely. After the death of his uncle Maximilian, his tasks became even heavier.

This blind date was a way to relax, and I happened to meet Solovyov who was delayed in Brunswick for a few days on the way.

As for the issue of marriage, Carl was also worried that he had been in the army for too long and would not be able to give his cousin the happiness she deserved, and that she was involved in too many political issues.

Franz's thoughts are also involved here. Although he often suspected his third brother, he was very tolerant of who his most talented brother wanted to marry in terms of religious beliefs and political involvement. Otherwise, there would be no such trip.

(End of this chapter)