Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

Chapter 407 The Ultimatum, also known as the Letter of Sorrow
Napoleon was in Paris, taking a ride on his horse, but time was of the essence.

This person has so much energy that it's scary. He only rests for 4 hours a day, and this includes the time period from drooping his eyelids to light sleep.

As for his high energy and strong desire for control, he obviously likes to do many things, including finding a mistress.

But at this moment today, he was listening to Caulaincourt's advice.

"Caulaincourt, is that all?"

"Yes, sire. The King of Prussia has issued an ultimatum, or, to use the diplomatic term used by the Russians recently, 'so-called.'"

"'So-called' means we don't admit it, we just listened to their opinions, right, Caulaincourt? Although you are sometimes 'stupid', you still have some talent in understanding these contents. What is the opinion of His Majesty the King? He wants us to withdraw from the German region and dissolve the Rhine Confederation. Is there anything else?"

"Sire, I will read you the rest, apart from these platitudes."

"Read it aloud, Caulaincourt; I won't be offended."

"The King's Expectations of His Majesty the Emperor, the French Army"

When Caulaincourt finished reading, Napoleon shook his head.

"It's really nothing new. Our friend obviously overlooked one point. Prussia stopped caring about Vienna's affairs after the Treaty of Basel in 1795. It was a kind of 'watching the fire from the other side of the river'. They have already had enough. Not only have they taken the benefits themselves, but they are also greedy and want to take Hanover and some other places. They also want to dictate to us. Since they want war, this coward must taste the power of our army."

"Your Majesty, how should we respond?" Caulaincourt was even preparing to record it. It was obvious that Napoleon would not allow a nobleman with a title to record it.

"You don't need to do this, Caulaincourt. Just call the clerk. You don't even need my full-time secretary."

After the secretary arrived, Napoleon began to dictate: "This paragraph must be included in what I want to dictate. Believe me, I have such a powerful force that none of you can shake my victory! But why, so much blood must be shed? For what purpose? I communicate with your Majesty, just like I talked with Emperor Alexander before Austerlitz. You can consider the following words and find the archives to repeat them, but your Majesty, you will definitely fail! You will give up the peaceful life of you and your subjects, but you can't provide any reason for your speech! Today you are still innocent and can negotiate with me in a way that is commensurate with your level, but in less than a month, your status will be different."

"Your Majesty, are you here yet?"

"That's all. Thank you, sir. I just need you to decide what words to use in it."

"Your Majesty, is 'Innocent' also used here?"

"If you think it's inappropriate, you can use some harsh words, but the main idea must be clear. I want to review it after it's written."

After Napoleon had said this, he continued riding, leaving the main business to the clerk and continuing to chat with Caulaincourt.

"Caulaincourt, do you want to choose a good horse too?"

"Your Majesty, I don't think so. It might remind me of Queen Louise."

"Why is it her? What shocking remarks did this lady make?"

"Your Majesty, I think she should not be a lady, but a Valkyrie, leading a troop of cavalry, through the Brandenburg Gate, and even into the streets of Paris."

"What is she doing here? She doesn't even need to find a city gate when she comes to Paris. Is she going to pass by the construction site?"

"If this is the case, a 'safety helmet' should be added, that is, a helmet that construction workers wear on their heads to prevent falling objects from high altitudes."

"Then Pyrrhus will certainly need one, but this lady will not have a stone to throw, and will instead be the one being thrown at."

"Your Majesty, you are actually joking at this time."

"I think your friend, Caulaincourt, has not yet realized how much trouble he has caused. And I already knew that Prussia began mobilizing last month. The number of troops mobilized is close to 200,000, including their army and the Saxon army that was coerced."

"Your Majesty, what are your plans?"

"You'll know once you're on the battlefield."

At the same time, Berlin was also sending messages to St. Petersburg.

Langeron and Solovyov were in the military base in Jelgava and knew the news earlier than St. Petersburg.

"This ultimatum will not cause Bonaparte to waver in any way, but will only strengthen his determination."

"Michelle, what do you think will happen?"

"We have made a plan in Petersburg. The difference is the speed of Prussia's defeat, and we can mobilize the army accordingly."

"But Marshal Kamensky, who came to command the army here, I just want to say that Mikhail Fedorovich himself certainly doesn't want to command the battle. But with him here, he can help us solve many problems."

"You are the Grand Marshal's disciple. Are you sure there is no problem with him?"

"I am his son's comrade-in-arms. We went there together when we fought at Guimen Bridge."

Langgeron looked at Solovyov. This guy was really a "social butterfly". He was well connected with all factions in the Russian army and had worked with quite a few people. The same should be true for women.

When I write my memoirs in the future, I must make a note of him, but I will only say that there is evidence.

After thinking about it for a while, he continued to talk to Solovyov: "That's good, at least he won't cause you any trouble."

"I hope he doesn't remember that I offended him when I was fifteen and a lieutenant."

"What happened to you? Michelle, aren't you always smart?"

"I was a child at the time. Speaking directly to him, the best commander in Russia was Alexander Vasilyevich."

"It's a small matter, Michel. If it was a generalissimo, he might still be very clear-headed at this age. But the commander-in-chief who came now is in good health, but he may not still have the ability to command."

"Ah, that makes sense. Count, you don't mind if we start the deduction on the map now, right?" "But we only brought our lieutenants, and no one is here to help us place your 'chess pieces'."

"It still needs to be kept secret. So, you can choose a side."

"As much as I don't like it, Michel, I will play the role of the Prussian 'clockwork men' today, and you will play the French army."

"why?"

"If you follow the mechanical way of fighting like the Prussians, you won't be able to display your abilities, but I have some confidence in this approach."

Langgeron probably doesn't know about his relationship now, but Solovyov is happy to do so.

He has recently been trying to imitate the French methods, and he has been doing this kind of research for many years.

"Then, if I were the emperor of the French people, the Corsican Bonaparte, I would act from south to north. I would deploy several armies together, with the main force in the center still holding the Guards as a reserve, and the First and Third Armies on the right wing of the entire Grand Army."

Solovyov did not slack off. He tried hard to recall Napoleon's deployment and imitate his behavior, and what to do when maneuvering on the battlefield.

And Langgeron also knew that Solovyov was more concerned about battlefield mobility. He was also scalp-numbing about this formation, but he was not Hohenlohe, who had to be more cautious at this time and defeated the troops behind the favorable mountain and river terrain.

Looking at Langgeron's presentation, Solovyov had an idea in mind.

"If I follow your plan, I shall have to take measures along the Elbe."

"Your method is quite clever. Did you refer to the action in Italy?"

"We did that several times when we crossed the river in Italy."

Solovyov's deployment was like a revolving door. Even with Langeron's conservative deployment, it would take about 25 days to compress the Prussian army around Brandenburg.

"If we are near Berlin, the King of Prussia can ask for our reinforcements. I hope he will do so."

Langgeron still had some tricks up his sleeve. When he was at a disadvantage in terms of military strength, he gave up a large tract of territory and moved to the vicinity of Berlin. Even when he had preserved more than 120,000 troops, he was still prepared to abandon Berlin and go to West Prussia to join the Russian army that was about to enter East Prussia.

"At this time, 20,000 Swedish troops will join in. Although not many, they can also strengthen the strength of the coalition. I hope the Prussians will do so."

Napoleon was very confident. He believed that he could defeat the Prussians and lay siege to the city within a month.

Langgeron and Solovyov's deductions put this time at around 25 days, but Langgeron only lost troops on the right wing of the Prussian army, so he still had people. Although his combat effectiveness might decline, he still had a chance to turn things around by fighting and retreating at the same time.

However, the Prussians were so confident that they even believed they could win with their own strength, without the need for Russian money.

The closer it got to the start of the war, the more the Duke of Brunswick missed his uncle and his group of old guys.

Young people nowadays are really arrogant. He is the only veteran who participated in the Seven Years War, and this feeling of loneliness really makes him very uncomfortable.

In the past, he could talk to his youngest son about his worries, but now that the "Black Duke" is leading the troops again, he feels even more lonely.

Hohenlohe also participated in the battles at the end of the Seven Years' War. Because of his status, he could start as an officer, but he obviously did not have a clear understanding of the current Prussian army. He thought he could fight.

They are all immersed in the glory of the Prussian army in the past. In the past, the Prussian army fought against the French in the Holy Roman Empire and never lost. This argument is not good.

"Damn it, kids, let's stop here. There's still some time before the war starts, and we still have some time to decide the final deployment before the whole army is deployed. Don't make a hasty decision because of attack or defense. At least, His Majesty the King will be here tomorrow, and we can express our opinions in front of him."

After everyone left, he would drag his old body back to rest.

However, the Duke of Brunswick has always been in good health and looks like he can live to 90 years old. Even Queen Louise wishes him to live longer.

It was too lonely for a veteran of a bygone era to have not died from a bullet in battle and to have watched colleagues older than himself pass away.

He was also very worried about things at home. As his first three sons were more mentally retarded than the last, he had always wanted to pass his position to his youngest son. However, he was troubled by the inheritance law and did not make a decision immediately.

In the Duchy of Brunswick, he could only continue to rule at this age. In order to ensure the safety of his family, he had prepared to arrange for his youngest daughter-in-law Mary to take refuge in Sweden, and the rest of his family would be left to the care of relatives in Hanover.

In fact, his family, apart from the "Black Duke", can be said to be composed of the elderly, the young, the sick, the disabled, the pregnant, and the passengers with children.
He had too many things to worry about, and his longevity and good health became a huge worry for him.

"If I die, let me die directly on the battlefield, not lying in the hospital."

It's not surprising that he has such thoughts, as old people are always very lonely.

As for the latest letter from Jelgava, it was delivered to him only two days ago.

It was the young man who had come to visit his territory, now a colonel at the age of 25.

What Solovyov mentioned in the letter was the opinion of the headquarters of the "East Prussian Corps" of the Russian army supporting Prussia.

"Marshal Kamensky is still on his way from Oryol to the headquarters, so we can only hold a meeting to discuss and decide. Chief of Staff General Langeron, Second Army Commander General Buchholden, First Army Acting Commander General Ostermann-Tolstoy, and I, as the Chief of Operations, have discussed through correspondence and face-to-face discussions that none of us believe that the Prussian army has the ability to take the initiative to launch an offensive and win a victory in a battle on its own."

After reading this part, the Duke of Brunswick closed his eyes in the recliner and began to think about countermeasures.

"I'm old, not like I was young." He couldn't help but think of his youth in his uncle's army and the current situation.

If his uncle was still alive, he would have chosen to take the initiative to attack, but none of the generals in the army had his ability. There might be some brave people like Seydlitz and Saito in the cavalry, but as a commander of a region, none of them could fight.

The army needs a renewal. His youngest son is a capable general, but he is not fit to be a commander. Several young princes still need to grow up. As for those younger than him, even these old men in their fifties and sixties are often incompetent and very arrogant.

At this time, being a helmsman on a rotten ship makes one feel that the hero is in his twilight years.

(End of this chapter)