Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

Chapter 319 The Tsar is a donkey

When negotiating with the British, Austria had already expressed its intention.

Although there were still many voices in the Vienna court opposing the war, it had to be taken into account that after Austria lost the Southern Netherlands and Northern Italy, its fiscal revenue had shrunk significantly. Without money, the government would have a hard time managing.

Moreover, there is Hungary inside. Although the nobles here can support Vienna's actions, they also have to give up something in exchange for profits.

From this perspective, Austria does need the explicit support of Britain and Russia before it can join.

In Alexander's opinion, one of his teammates was reluctant to spit out what he had eaten, while the other would not take action unless someone came to help. Add to that some teammates who were a patchwork group and the cowardly Prussian, and this regiment was really difficult to lead.

In addition, Württemberg, where his cousin and brother-in-law was located, and Baden, where his father-in-law was located, were too close to France and were both caught up in the opposing camp, which made Alexander very uncomfortable.

However, the good news is that Alexandra has received a letter from the French saying that the French have not taken any action against Queen Charlotte, the second wife of the British royal family, so she, the Russian princess, is still safe.

In addition, she was pregnant again, so she had to inform her family about this matter.

Alexander recalled that this eldest sister really resembled her mother in physique, even though her cousin was sometimes a little off-key, she would have fun outside and come back to have a deep and simple conversation, which would easily lead to more children.
When he thought so, he didn't even think about how many mistresses he had. Compared with him, Tsar Paul was simply a moral model. Due to insufficient contraceptive measures, he could no longer have children with his wife, so he found a maid in the palace. His mother even knew about this!

As for the letters from my other two sisters, they are still safe for now because they live in the sphere of influence on both sides of Prussia's territory.

King Frederick William III of Prussia should have switched places with his wife. Queen Louise herself had an extremely strong character and was also a staunch advocate of war. If the title was excluded, she was more suitable for the position of ruler and was very popular among the Prussian people.

If this king were a royal consort, it would seem more appropriate, and he would not look like a Hohenzollern at all. If he were to be king in such a careless manner, he would have to grit his teeth and suffer more in the future.

If this weak king had made up his mind earlier and pulled out Prussia's rapid-fire army, although it is hard to say how strong their combat effectiveness is, it would be better to pull out an army of hundreds of thousands to act as a atmosphere group and wave flags and cheer than to be indecisive.

"Soloviev, what do you think of the Prussians?"

"Your Majesty, you want to ask me?"

"That's right. You are improving very quickly. I think you should be able to become a column commander based on your qualifications before you are thirty."

"Your Majesty, if you say so, you must also consider that I am a junior. And no matter how much you prefer General Barclay de Tolly and Peter Ivanovich, there are still some who are more senior than you."

Solovyov was called in alone because Alexander wanted to form a staff team that would be convenient for daily use.

These included Prince Peter Volkonsky, nephew of old Soloviev, now General of the Court;

Count Tickenhausen, Kutuzov’s third son-in-law and one of the Tsar’s aides-de-camp;

Prince Peter Dolgorukov, the second son of Prince Peter the Elder, who was in charge of the Tula Arsenal, and some other officers, including the commanders of five Guards regiments. Solovyov took advantage of this and got a seat at the bottom of this team.

These people were all easy to talk to, and Solovyov benefited from these three and Bagration. All four of them had contacts with Solovyov and had praised him in front of the Tsar.

Well, that sounds like the way of speaking that worked in the Russian court. I'll see it again.

But Alexander also knew that these people were very loyal to him, and he could tell from the way they spoke.

Especially Bagration's violent temper. When he is angry with someone, he is like a fierce Caucasian.
But when he was at home, with his wife, he was very humble. This was because the "little goblin" went to the sanatorium for recuperation after giving birth to a child, otherwise he would have been even more humble.

There was no flattery in it, and besides, Solovyov was sent here by Paul not to be a spy, but to be used by him.

"Let's not talk about that for now, Solovyov. You did a great job during the Guards' exercise. The Guards Jager Regiment was well prepared in the past, and it is even better now. You have also done a great job in the past few months since you came back."

"Your Majesty, I think the brothers have a better foundation. I discovered this problem when I was in the Selenge Regiment. Our soldiers are hardworking and resolute in executing orders, but the officers' training is not enough."

Although Alexander doesn't like to hear unpleasant advice, it depends on the person.

For example, he could hardly listen to what Kutuzov said.

But if it was the abstract Suvorov, if he were still alive, Alexander would be able to accept it even if the words were unpleasant.

Alexander himself had some respect for the general, so he took good care of his family, disciples and even servants. If someone was really talented, he would employ them.

However, this is like a bloodline cultivation and a famous general collector.
"That's it, what do you want to do?"

"We need to make sure that all officers have certain skills, even if they can be learned quickly."

After hearing this, Alexander's mouth corners slightly raised, which was somewhat interesting.

"Constantine came to me and said that he was communicating with Archduke Karl of Austria. That was the 'academic exchange' between you, right? I know my brother. He was just a mouthpiece between you and Archduke Karl. Of course, he surprised me."

Alexander and Constantine have a very good relationship as brothers. He thinks he knows his younger brother very well, and that he is loyal, brave and decisive. However, he has also started to study recently, and this kind of progress is not easy.

What was surprising was that he could talk about some military theories in a very logical way, which even Alexander felt was unscientific.

In his mind, Constantine was a brave general in military terms, not someone who was good at theory.

As for the letter from Archduke Karl, Alexander also read it and found it very interesting.

"Don't hide it, Solovyov. I know you have a lot of good stuff. You can share this knowledge with these generals."

"But I'm also worried that some people will say I'm just talking nonsense."

"What's that?"

"That is to say, I am a 'military strategist who talks big'. There is a story behind this."

"You can tell me about it. I'm interested."

Solovyov was thinking, you two, plus your baby (and one of his own), every one of you needs my story.
But I can’t say it out loud, so I can only tell the original story.

"Your Majesty, this is the story. In the end, Zhao was defeated in this decisive battle. However, we also have to consider that the Qin army has more troops than the Zhao army."

Although he can speak, he also needs to consider the attitude of the audience. Especially Alexander, when speaking to him, he also needs to consider his attitude.

"When you talk about the number of people, are you considering the possible war between us and the French now?"

"Yes, Your Majesty."

When facing such a smart master, you really can't pretend to be confused.

You have to tell him what he wants to hear, especially when he is exposed.

"But it doesn't matter. The real problem will only be revealed on the battlefield. If you worry too much, how can you become a general in the future?"

My goodness, if Alexander wore an eyepatch, Solovyov would be suspicious.

Your Majesty, are you related to Xiahou Dun in some way?

Solovyov himself has become Li Dian. I don’t know if it’s because he wants to have a bit of “elder style”. He doesn’t wear glasses, and his appearance definitely doesn’t look like him.

"Yes, Your Majesty, I have always considered a lot. When Alexander Vasilyevich was here, he said that I would be good as an adjutant and staff officer, but I chose to be a commander."

"Your performance in Italy and Switzerland was very good, it doesn't seem like that kind of evaluation."

Alexander's conversation topics are indeed a bit erratic, and his biggest problem is that he is overconfident.

“But I also thought that our army would win, especially since according to the agreement, the number of troops that can be deployed is more than 40.”

It still comes down to numbers, and if they attack several battlefields at the same time, the French will be unable to focus on one thing while neglecting another.

However, Prussia, whose king is very cowardly and whose queen is very stubborn, Austria, which is used as an experience bag by Napoleon, and Sweden, whose large army is afraid that it will be stopped by Denmark and needs to pass through Pomerania, these few allies are not as valuable as the British wallet.

You know, because of the assassination of Tsar Paul, the British were very passive in public opinion, and the initial military expenditure for the Russian army of 125 was priced at million.

Since Alexander himself delayed the final signing of the agreement, the price has risen sharply, climbing all the way to 250 million, doubling.

Fortunately, this is in the European context, and they probably don’t have the term “idiot” here.

But as friendly forces, the Russians have some of this in mind.

However, in the St. Petersburg Agreement, such a rising value can also let the Tsar know that Britain still needs Russia to take action.

Solovyov knew that although Tsar Alexander was smart, he had the usual shortcomings of Tsars and Emperors of All Russia: his ears would always selectively accept certain remarks.

This is very troublesome, but it is also a good thing that he is willing to listen.

"Your Majesty, that is why our troops need to be fully trained. This includes officers."

In fact, there have been many strange things happening in Russia. The Patriotic War of 1812 was the only one, but even in the critical year of 1941, the "Great Patriotic War", there were cases where the army headquarters were deployed in front of the division and regiment headquarters, and some officers needed on-site guidance from generals.

It is unlikely that any country can avoid such a thing, but the grassroots officers on the Russian side are indeed relatively untrained.

Those who lack training even include many generals.

Alexander did not express his opinion on this matter, but just nodded in agreement.

This is considered a pass, but those officers, their daily lives.

Solovyov was a little surprised at that kind of life. For some people, having fun by using the identity of an officer was probably much more important than military training.

Especially among the Guards Cavalry, there are many officers like this, which is really hard to describe.

Even if Alexander adopted his ideas, the only group that could actually implement them was probably his own, and even then it was hard to say what the effect would be.

No wonder Andre doesn't like this kind of place and complains about it behind its back.

Of course, the most important thing for him recently is that Lisa is pregnant. This is a very important thing, and it is something that newlyweds are bound to have.

As for Alexander, Solovyov could not go into detail in front of the Tsar, but he was authorized to conduct special training with the Guards Chasseurs.

This is a good thing, as he wanted to change the "thin red line" strategy that the British used many times in the future into a "thin green line".

This set of his tactics was originally the part of the Russian army that was slowly growing after being beaten by the Turkish skirmishers. Even the "Sick Man of West Asia" was not without its merits at this time. At least their cavalry and light infantry were excellent.

As for the training of light infantry, I am afraid that the enemy officers standing in the front position will start to worry about their heads, especially when facing the Russian Guards.

You should know that among the three major guards regiments, there were also a few sergeants and shooters equipped with rifled guns. Because of the appearance of Solovyov's "Solkovsky rifle", they also replaced them with this.

The Russian army's precision shooting capabilities have indeed made great progress.

However, for many places, it may be too late to make adjustments now.

In addition to all this, Solovyov also took on a big job.

After completing the translation of Sun Tzu's Art of War and the Europeanized analysis of cases, he also wanted to display the results of his correspondence with Archduke Karl.

This course was intended to be given to junior officers of the Guards and the troops under the command of the Military Governors of St. Petersburg and Vyborg.

Although he always sharpens his sword before the battle, he has at least said it out loud, and this will make it easier for him to take action.

It seems that Solovyov also knew that he could always get things done by following the Tsar's wishes.

But if we do this, there will definitely be a lot of resistance, especially in the palace, where there are always people using the same method.

(End of this chapter)