Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

Chapter 215 027 Solovyov Enters France
The group left Dresden and headed for Paris. On the way, Solovyov also met William and Alexandra.

For Alexandra, her situation is actually very delicate. Württemberg is currently under the actual control of France. Once a war breaks out, William will need to transfer his wife overnight, and something is inevitable between France and Russia.

So when he met him and brought the letter, William actually knew very well that Alexandra would leave Stuttgart at that time.

"If a war breaks out, the entire southern Germany will probably become a war corridor. Your Highness can go to Oldenburg or Mecklenburg to take shelter temporarily. If that doesn't work, you can take refuge in Jelgava."

"Misha, why do you have such an idea? I thought peace should last for a while."

"Your Highnesses, you should know that Archduke Karl is visiting Saxony to participate in hunting activities, right?"

"I heard you're from Dresden, right?"

"Yes, Archduke Karl revealed some information, that is, France and Britain are not honest, and are now preparing for war, while Austria..."

William's attitude tended towards Russia and Austria. His father was considering joining France in order to preserve Württemberg, and Napoleon could indeed offer some benefits.

"I understand. I will make arrangements for this."

"Misha, go back and tell my brother about the situation here. Stuttgart itself has many pro-French nobles, as well as spies sent by France. As for the specific situation..."

Solovyov didn't expect Alexandra to be at this level. Maybe William told her something.

"Your Highness, if something goes wrong, you must arrange to escape to the north. Even in Mecklenburg you may not be safe. You will only be safe if you return to Russian territory or reach Austria."

Solovyov did not continue. Archduke Karl did not have a strong sense of confidentiality, and the political confusion in Vienna was not a one-day thing, but a long-standing and difficult problem.

Alexandra also knew that this was difficult, and she was stroking her belly. When she attended the wedding of the "Black Duke" and Mary in Lüneburg, her condition was not obvious, but now her belly was bulging.

"At least let's wait until the children are in my arms and can withstand the bumps before the war breaks out."

Alexandra was also afraid of the physique inherited from her mother. William would touch her a few times and she would get pregnant at the right time. Like Elena, she was still very young. If it was peacetime, this would not be a big deal, but the problem was that war was always unpredictable.

However, there was a long time between 1802 and 1805, which was enough for Alexandra and William to make arrangements. In particular, Stuttgart would soon be able to leave the French route to the north, and the French government and army would not make things difficult for women and children. As long as they left the troubled place, they would be safe.

With Alexander's temper, he would definitely join the anti-French alliance at the right time, until Tilsit was defeated by the French and forced to accept peace.

There were many troubles involved during this period, especially Alexander's sisters would most likely marry German princes. Louisa's sisters were better off. As long as they did not marry into countries hostile to France, there would be no major problems.

It was fine for Louisa in Petersburg, as it was quite far away, and Mary might suffer, but each kingdom, electorate, and principality had its own arrangements.

But the problem lies in the fact that Britain and France are competing for dominance in Europe and even the world. The fact that Austria and Russia can tolerate France's actions does not mean that Britain and France are willing to accept each other's small moves on and off the stage.

Leaving Stuttgart, there is Karlsruhe ahead, which is Louisa's hometown. However, Solovyov has not received any mission to go there. Duke Enghien's residence has been changing back and forth between Edenheim and the territories of some other German states, so it is unlikely that he can visit him.

Going further, we will enter France.

Compared to Prince Dolgorukov and his family who were very much looking forward to entering France, Solovyov did not feel any relaxation, but was highly alert.

After all, his public identity was a staff member of the Russian Empire's Embassy in Paris, an identity that was inconvenient both in public activities and in secret operations.

Of course, he was not assigned any intelligence work tasks. When he came to Paris, he still had to observe some changes in the French public opinion field and receive Russian dignitaries who came to Paris from Britain and Italy.

These people bought large quantities of luxury goods from Paris during peacetime. Even the ambassador to London, Count Vorontsov, could not help but ridicule some of them, especially a nobleman from the Demidov family who bought a large amount of ceramic tableware inlaid with precious metals. He called this very stupid.

If Solovyov wanted to do such a business, with his profiteer nature, as well as the friends left by Count Bobulinsky in Paris and Madame Le Brun, he would be able to quickly set up this trade route.

The problem is that Russia doesn't know when it will start a war with France, so this preparation is meaningless and has only some intelligence value. At the same time, he is just a mid-level officer and has no power to act beyond his authority.

When he arrived at the French border, he did not know that he was already a lieutenant colonel in the Guards, and that the promotion order had already been sent in advance to Count Arkady Ivanovich Morkov, the Russian ambassador in Paris.

His promotion speed is already rocket-like considering his background, and being promoted one level in rank may represent another problem - if he has no special merits in the past few years, he can forget about being promoted to colonel, and he must be particularly outstanding on the battlefield.

When they entered France, they did not go to Strasbourg, but went directly to Paris from the border between Baden and France.

This route passes through the south of the Vosges Mountains, past Nancy, and goes west. You don't need to take the main road, you can take a more convenient road and go directly to Paris from the south of Reims.

Of course, after arriving here, there are some strange things, that is, the French are always talkative.

"Where are you from, sir? I see you are wearing a green uniform. Are you a Russian officer?"

"Yeah, so what?"

"Recently, there have been quite a few Russians coming to France. You Russians are the easiest to talk to, pay quickly, and ask for little, but you just love to drink too much."

"It can't be helped. Russians all like to drink, with a few exceptions. But it's strange here. Why are you going to close the business so early?"

"We, the innkeeper, don't accept guests at night. If you come a little later, you will have to find a place to stay in the countryside. Although we are no longer at war with the Germans and the damn British have signed a peace treaty, there are too many merchants and travelers like you who have some status coming and going here."

"How many more can there be? I heard from French immigrants in St. Petersburg that Paris is the center of the world, but it is impossible to squeeze everyone in."

"That's right, that's right. But Mr. Officer, how are your guest rooms arranged?"

"You should have some sense, boss. See, the people who came are the master, the lady, and two young ladies. Except for me, an officer, the rest are servants."

"If that's the case, I can see it." The innkeeper had already seen the shield of the Dolgorukov family and the medal on Solovyov's chest. He knew that the guest who came back this time was of high status.

"Our mayor here is a businessman."

"What else do we want? Is it going to be more terrible than tax farmers? Or going door to door to recruit soldiers, or something else?"

"Anyway, the officials here aren't necessarily any better than when there was a king. Mr. François-Antoine Lallement doesn't like the Sans-culottes Club. We small businesses are fine, but those people, the mayor..."

"That's all right. I know two members of the Jacobin Club."

What he said was true, one of them was Count Stroganov, who was an official member and was registered in the archives.

The other was the Tsar who called himself a “Jacobin in spirit.” Both were heavyweights.

"But at that time, let's not talk about us from the provinces. There were quite a few people from Paris who came to collect grain."

It sounds familiar, but there's nothing we can do about it, that's just how Parisians are.

In France, Parisians have always looked down on people from the provinces. Solovyov had heard about this a long time ago and was also aware of the arrogance of Parisians.

Of course, the French in the countryside are still very simple, and some of them even have a unique French cunning and witty humor.

“Your mayor, he’s not bald, right?”

"If it was a bald mayor, that would be fine. We have had several great men here. Unfortunately, it was too chaotic back then, and these people either went to Paris or went into exile abroad. The only good thing now is that the First Consul is good at fighting wars, and France is at peace again. Only when there is peace can we innkeepers have an easier life. Otherwise, we are always nervous."

"I have heard that the First Consul is a very remarkable man."

"Besides, he is from the island, as we all heard in Nancy, and he speaks French with an accent, and writes French words with mistakes."

"But he is an artilleryman, so his math can't be wrong, and people who are good at math are good at learning."

"Well, I heard that he and Mr. Kano have a good relationship. Maybe people with knowledge and abilities can attract each other."

However, Kano is about to withdraw from politics for a while due to political differences, at least not on the core stage.

"Ah, indeed, how do you like my French?"

The innkeeper listened carefully, and when he recalled what Prince Vasily had just said to him, he laughed.

"You speak authentic French, much better than the French that gentleman just spoke! You sound like someone from the south, with a Marseille accent."

"I feel relieved when you say that. But I want to ask you one thing. My stepmother is French. Do you think I am a French relative?"

"That should be the case, but sir, do your stepmother and your father have any children?"

"I am the eldest son in my family, with two younger sisters and a younger brother who was born not long ago. Do you think I am a relative of the French?"

"They are relatives from France. But from the way you sound, it seems like you are looking for relatives."

"But my stepmother is from the West Indies. I wonder if there is such a lady, also from there, my stepmother's cousin, named Rose, and her family also has a plantation."

"That's not easy to find, but I saw in the newspaper that General Leclerc won a victory in Haiti. Perhaps I can find your relative there."

"Thank you. I don't think it's that easy to find out. When we crossed the border, we filled out a form. On it, I said that I was going to Paris to work and to visit relatives. When I asked them, they didn't know anything either."

"The West Indies are too far away, sir. If your stepmother had come to France, she might have found some relatives, whether in Paris or in one of our provinces."

"She went to Nantes and attended the church school there."

"Then you should go to Nantes on the coast and ask. We don't usually have people from the West Indies here, except for those blacks. Maybe you can find out something from them. Some of the citizens serving in the Republic's army are freed blacks."

Judging from the tone of the boss, he should be against slavery. But the First Consul wanted to do this in Haiti, so he sent his brother-in-law.

Moreover, General Leclerc probably won't live long. After all, some diseases in the West Indies are very severe.

"Thank you. I don't have anything else to ask. In addition, the two young ladies are young, and the master's family are all nobles. We will stay here for a day, so you have to be more careful here."

"That's no problem, sir. Also, if you want to take a day off, you can go to the City Hall. It was the palace of some king's father-in-law in the past. It's worth a look."

By the way, this place used to be the territory of the Duke of Lorraine, and the town hall was the palace where Louis XV's father-in-law, the unfortunate abdicated king of Poland, lived before.

But Solovyov did not look at the nature of the town hall. He had already arrived in France and was going to stay there for a while.

If he had the chance, he would naturally go to Nantes, but that would be something he would do outside of work.

There is still a curfew in Nancy. Since 1792, places like eastern and northern France have been very vigilant at night, especially after the assassination. It is normal to have strict control at night in recent years.

As for which side to attack, there is actually no difference between what the First Consul and Robespierre did; both sides will be attacked in the end.

As for whether foreigners might be tracked and monitored after entering France, Solovyov actually thought that Montaki was wrong and the Minister of Police, Mr. Fouché, might have an explanation.

(End of this chapter)