Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

The Amber Room was a gift from the Prussians, and it does look very grand.

We may not see this in the future. After all, Germany is also a "thieving country" and its dirty hands are a daily routine. It can also be said to be a daily routine for European countries.

Now Grand Duke Constantine and Prince Bagration, representing the Russian royal family, took Catherine's hand and handed her over to Caulaincourt.

"Sir, this is also related to the friendly relations between the two countries. I hope that His Majesty the Emperor of France can treat our princess well. This will also be a testimony to the friendly relations between the two countries."

Anyway, after a string of words, Caulaincourt responded and handed Ekaterina a jewelry box containing a diamond ring.

Although Solovyov wanted to complain when he saw this, he held it back.

After all, he personally didn't like diamonds very much, but Napoleon was able to get such a big one.

Who knows what will happen to the unfortunate diamond in Little Cake's house after it is stolen.

Or in another scenario, it was part of a Bourbon royal collection of diamonds.

Next was the reception, but that was all, and the attendees were mainly local nobles from St. Petersburg.

After the ceremony and celebration were over, Alexander called Solovyov alone.

"Your Majesty, you called me here at this time."

"Sit down, Misha. This is not your first trip to Paris. Would you like me to arrange an assistant for you? You are a soldier and you need help with diplomatic affairs. How about asking Count Nesselrode to go with you?"

"It would be perfect for Carl to go there."

"But he has a mission. He is to serve as the secretary and economic adviser to the ambassador to France. You are going there to help him get familiar with the situation in Paris. Besides, I am worried about him because he always follows Metternich's pace."

"That's no wonder. Karl admired Metternich too much, so it was inevitable that some problems would arise."

"You still know, so that's good. I'll leave it to you to assign tasks. The contents above must be destroyed after reading them."

Alexander really likes to test his cadres, and he is also a riddle man in daily life. He gave clear instructions, but asked Solovyov to destroy them in person. This was all conveyed to Nesherrode by relying on memory, which was indeed a test.

However, Solovyov had been an aide-de-camp for so many years and often did the work of chief of staff and quartermaster general, so he naturally kept it in mind.

"Keep in touch with Mr. Talleyrand, follow the economic trends in France, and keep in touch with Mr. Metternich."

As he was muttering, he had already started to light the paper.

"Your Majesty, I think this is very simple. We don't even need to say anything for the last item. Carl will do it himself."

"But there is a problem, Misha. You have to remember that you can't do things with too much emotion, which can easily affect your judgment."

But it always feels strange when Alexander says this.

After Solovyov agreed, he was also thinking back that at least Alexander had been very emotional in the past, and had always been an actor, and many things could not be carried out.

It was inevitable that something would happen with this marriage with France.

The best time to hit the road is now while the weather is still good. At least by the end of October, it will be very convenient to go to a coastal city like St. Petersburg along the Baltic Sea road.

In order not to affect the mood of the whole family, Solovyov asked his father and stepmother to take his younger brothers and sisters to leave first before the "handover" ceremony.

Solovyov himself was with Katya, and Adela was also here, so Madame Recamier and the newborn Clara were left at home, but they were not without someone to take care of them, as the servants in the house had already been arranged.

Queen Mother Maria was very reluctant to part with her daughter, so she personally saw her off in Tsarskoye Selo.

What is different from other palaces is that the family ties in the Russian court are still relatively strong at this time. That is, the level of quarrels and sabotage is already considered a relatively poor relationship within the royal family.

In the future, it is very likely that a situation will arise where the throne of such an old man will be passed on to his brothers several times before they finally decide on someone to take it.

Accompanying Catherine on the journey was Katya. Because of her family's title and her husband's improved status, she now also had a court status and could accompany the Grand Duchess on her trip.

But the most fun part was when we reached Königsberg.

Solovyov and Caulaincourt were also discussing some specific matters, especially how to arrange the wedding in Paris.

Caulaincourt was also surprised by Solovyov's attitude, so he couldn't help asking him.

"You were against it at the beginning. Was it really not because of Queen Josephine?"

"If you think about it, it may be more beneficial for me if Her Highness Catherine marries to Paris. I will have washed away the main relatives in France, and no one will be able to say anything about my identity."

"Michelle, what do you mean?"

"Armand, do you know? In Russia, as long as you have a little French element, you may be attacked by some people in the court. Even just a few simple conversations may make you labeled as a pro-French element. Although His Majesty the Emperor will not think so, there are always some ministers who have their own ideas. Just like your minister of police, well, we can't be heard when we talk here, right?"

"No, Mr. Fouché wouldn't care that much. After all, this is still in Prussia. And we are still walking. When it's almost night here, there are very few people on the street, and few of them can even understand French."

"Then it's safe, we can talk more deeply."

But at this time, one of Catherine's maids ran over and called Solovyov.

"Your Excellency, the Countess seems to be feeling unwell. I want you to go and see her."

"Excuse me, Armand. I'll come to your place tonight and we can continue our conversation. But we won't play cards. Just prepare a chess set."

As for the reason why the maid asked Solovyov to come over, it was simple.

Katya is not feeling well, judging from the last time.
The two of them have been very intimate over the past few months, and it's inevitable that someone might die.

Although Katya was not feeling well, this was what she wanted.

"How are you doing?"

"Just like in Crimea, it looks like she is pregnant." "Then you should pay more attention to rest."

Ekaterina watched from the side. Katya was younger than her and gave birth to twins for the first time. It seemed that she could easily conceive a life.

"Your Highness, I may need to take another carriage and will not be able to accompany you."

"It doesn't matter. Your health is more important. If it really doesn't work, when we pass through Berlin and Weimar, if you can't hold on, you can stay there first and come to Paris when you recover."

"That won't do. I promised Mishka that I would go to Paris to visit my relatives this time."

Ekaterina knew that Katya was not feeling well and her words were somewhat aggressive, so she tolerated her "offensive" words.

After all, it was she who was going to replace Solovyov's aunt and become the new queen of France.

However, although there are not many suns in France, there are still more moons. After all, this is also a major astronomical country.

Seeing Katya's insistence, Solovyov also had to consider what might happen on the road.

He also checked his wife's pulse to confirm the situation.

"Has the doctor examined it?"

"It's not a big deal, but I'm worried too. Misha, this is your wife, I think your decision is more important."

"But the key is that you arrive in Paris on time, Your Highness. Now that Austria and France have finally reached an armistice, the most important task is to get you to Paris safely. Who knows what will happen this winter. As for Katya's health, her physical fitness is better than yours, so she should be fine. I am of course more concerned about my own wife!"

In this case, Adela and the servants brought by the Soloviev family would have to be called to take care of Katya, and a replacement would be needed for the court lady who accompanied Catherine. Also coming along were the previous ambassador to France, Count and Countess Peter Tolstoy, who were older and more experienced, and were also suitable candidates.

After making sure his wife was asleep, Solovyov went to Kolangou as promised.

"Armand, this is about my wife again. There is no other way. She is still very young and I am not even thirty years old. It is easy to have a child in this situation. If..."

"Don't feel offended. There are two of us here, and you don't have to worry about anyone eavesdropping."

Caulaincourt also knew that sometimes secret talks could not be known by a third party, and the closer they were to Paris, the more careful they had to be. Now that they were still in East Prussia, there was no problem.

"If my uncle was still the emperor and hadn't been busy with his career, he and my aunt might have had a child a long time ago, and this wouldn't have happened."

"But you are still somewhat related to His Majesty the Emperor."

Caulaincourt's tone sounded like a joke, but it was also true.

For Polina, Solovyov is the father of her child. She gave birth to three sons with three men. The youngest son is from Prince Borghese, but there is no identification technology now, so it is impossible to confirm who the father of the child is.

"If that counts, it may be even more complicated. My wife is a distant relative of the Russian royal family. If you think about it, she can also be considered a relative of His Majesty the Emperor. After all, Her Majesty the Queen is the sister of His Majesty Karl, the heir to Baden."

In fact, he doesn't need to beat around the bush. To Louisa, he is also the "father of her children," and of two.

As for Louisa's other little wish, it was probably that her youngest daughter and Solovyov's son Pasha would grow up safely and healthily in the future, and they could consider getting engaged.

Well, it seems that the distance between relatives has been greatly shortened, but this cannot be said out loud. Solovyov used an extra long circle to get around it.

"That's true. If that's the case, your career in Russia might be very delicate. That's what you said yourself."

"What can we do?"

Now Solovyov doesn't have to worry about this. He is more worried about Speransky. After he leaves the post of aide-de-camp, it is inevitable that something will happen in St. Petersburg. The reform bill cannot be passed, but Speransky has become a target because he has become the Russian Secretary of State, the actual head of government, second only to the emperor, and his power even exceeds that of the prime ministers and grand viziers of some monarchies.

"You don't have to worry about that now. You may have to worry more about becoming a father again."

As a French person, there is nothing wrong with speaking like this.

But Solovyov felt a chill on his scalp when he thought about his two old lovers in Paris.

Given Polina's lust, is there a man she likes?
Fortunately, she has never met Count Stroganov, the kind of nobleman who has been handsome since childhood and is a little narcissistic. He can be said to be woken up by his own handsomeness every day. He is also the richest man in Russia. Is Polina's lustful and materialistic nature?
Otherwise, there might be something even more ridiculous.

I don't know what will happen when I arrive in Paris. Anyway, given the current situation, when I am in Paris.
Well, Katya will probably be very angry, and then I’ll have to find a way to coax my wife.

But as for Caulaincourt, he can just watch the fun.

But as a friend, he certainly didn't want to get Solovyov into trouble.

Generally speaking, both men were inclined toward peace, but Caulaincourt could only act according to the wishes of his emperor.

He knew what Solovyov had told him privately, that is, according to the provisions of the Treaty of Tilsit, the two sides should divide Europe like a fruit cake. The fruit on it could be left for some monarchies, but the cake had to be clearly divided between the two sides.

Although he did not mention this in his letters to his country, based on the characteristics Alexander always displayed, this should be Russia's basic attitude.

Russia only regards France as an equal ally. If you have any problems, I can help you.

However, if Russia's interests are harmed, the relationship between the two sides becomes delicate.

"Let's not talk about that. Let's change the subject. Armand, what do you think the British fear most?"

"I don't think it's the mainland blockade, their smuggling is rampant."

"Indeed, the British are not too afraid of this. It just makes them uncomfortable. The real problem is probably that two powerful countries like Russia and France can unite to threaten their maritime trade. Especially from two directions. One is the frequent harassment in the Atlantic Ocean. The other is the Indian Ocean."

"In the Indian Ocean?"

"Yes, it is there. If one day a European power can threaten India, the British will also be anxious."

As for now, the British are already feeling dreadful when facing the islands controlled by the French in the Indian Ocean. (End of this chapter)