Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

After leaving Smolensk, Solovyov was also included in the group targeting Barclay.

It was not for any other reason. He received an order to leave the ferry and continue to move to Vyazma, so he left the ferry and handed over the defense zone to Raevsky, and continued to move under alternating cover of the retreat.

As they marched towards Vyazma, they could already see the fire raging there.

"Another city is on fire."

Solovyov was now unable to contain himself. The old soldiers were complaining, the young officers were complaining, and when the battalion commanders and regiment commanders also came to him to complain, the matter could no longer be suppressed.

Smolensk also has some special significance for Russia. When the Smolensk Regiment withdrew from the battle, the morale of the Russian army was greatly affected.

You should know that among the previous portraits, there is Our Lady of Smolensk, which has a special status in Russia, especially since everyone is a devout Orthodox Christian.

Solovyov did not seem to be a religious person, but his wife was very pious, and his subordinates were also pious. Even before Smolensk was lost to the French, the local bishop was still praying in the church.

At times like this, one has to consider the situation of his subordinates.

Normally, these veterans would be able to endure this when they were winning a battle, but not now.

Some even pulled at his reins to talk, especially the veterans of the Moscow Grenadiers.

"It would be fine if it was in normal times. We have always won battles. When the French came, they didn't catch us. We fell into your trap. But with Barclay..."

"I've never won a battle with this Barclay."

Someone else added later that it was clear that the dissatisfaction had extended to the soldiers.

Even the old soldier Semenov, who had served beyond his term and returned on his own, spoke up.

"Five years ago we were at war with the French in East Prussia. Wasn't Barclay there then?"

"Yes, even though we won the battle, we chose to retreat in the end."

These veterans are somewhat dissatisfied with Barclays, and even have some feudal and superstitious ideas.

"Master, don't you think so?"

If you ask him, he has to continue.

"I don't think so. In war, luck is not the only thing that matters. It also depends on the deployment."

For example, Liu Xiu could summon meteor showers, and Li Keyong would have rain when he lost a battle, which was very appropriate at this time.

We can see this situation now. The Russian army is on the way to Vyazma and it is raining, which makes the soldiers under their command feel unlucky.

In fact, what they didn't know was that Napoleon, who had just entered Smolensk, heard that the Russian army was retreating on the main road, so he sent part of the 1st Army to pursue them.

Although Pavel Tuchkov was defeated on the battlefield and captured, the French army also suffered heavy losses.

Marshal Davout's close friend, General Guidan, commander of the 1rd Division of the 3st Army, had his leg blown off by a shell during the battle and eventually died in Napoleon's tent.

The 1st Army has always been the iron triangle of the old 3rd Army, consisting of Morand, Friant and Guidan, and they have always cooperated well with Davout.

The final result of the Battle of Valentino was that although the French army inflicted heavy damage on the Russian army serving as the rear guard, which was considered a tactical victory, it failed to stop Barclay's retreat, so it had to continue to move forward.

At this time, it was raining all the time, and the roads near Vyazma were muddy even on normal days, and it was even worse at this time, so that younger generals like Solovyov never chose to take a car.

The atmosphere in the rain was naturally not good, the veterans said, and Solovyov was also trying to find a solution.

Although Kutuzov may take office, others cannot be ruled out, such as Bennigsen.

If Bennigsen came, this old guy likes to steal and cheat in war, but his ability to mobilize troops has always been worrying.

If things go wrong, something bad might happen, so he still hoped that Kutuzov could come, but this was not something he could decide.

Now the rear guard of the Russian army is Alexander, the youngest of the Tuchkov brothers and himself.

Apart from anything else, they had already lost their third brother, who had fallen into the hands of the French. The rest of the troops were now serving as rear guards, and with their morale low, they were indeed affected.

Barclays obviously. Even Solovyov himself feels a little unlucky this year.

The commander of the cavalry division under his command, Major General Otto Norlin, died of illness in the barracks two days ago. He lost his father-in-law in the first half of the year and his old superior Prince Dmitry in the second half of the year. The obituary has been sent to him through his widow, and probably Peter Volkonsky has a copy as well.

No one knows how many things will happen this year.

Many of his friends joined the army, and this war had only just begun in Russia. According to the monarch himself, it was probably far from over.

In this atmosphere, he felt unwell all over, and due to the irritation of his nasal cavity, he also sneezed.

"Master, are you okay?"

The orderly was worried that he would catch a cold and get sick. If he was in the city, it would be easier to find a doctor.

This was during the retreat. Even the nearby villages were evacuated, and heavy rain put out the fire that had been set earlier. This also resulted in there being no place to live. Even if we found a village to live in, the roofs would be leaking.

"I'm fine. I'm not the unlucky General Norin. He's older than me, and the old cavalryman's body may not be as tough as mine. The problem now is that we are still retreating. If I were older, I could lead an army group now."

"But sir, you were already a corps commander when you were on the Danube."

Someone actually said that, and Solovyov could only say seriously: "Fighting the Turks is different from fighting the French. When fighting the French, we must be more alert and not be like the Germans."

These soldiers were indeed dissatisfied with some of the Germans.

But there are still many key positions in the 8th Army, and only Solovyov can say this.

The veterans' expressions were still serious, and everyone knew that this was not an easy task.

"You need to cheer up, but you don't drink. Otherwise, you can try the vodka we brought. It's strong and can warm your body."

"Forget it! You can keep it for yourselves, and when we get to camp, just give me a big bowl of hot soup."

He was still instinctively resistant to alcohol and declined the kindness of these veterans.

Besides, vodka is strong, and he himself knows that his alcohol tolerance is limited, so he is always afraid of delaying things.

After all, as the army commander, he had also served as the division commander for his brother-in-law Christian for two days. It was when he drank too much that the entire division joined the battle. Since there were no senior generals in the division, he, as the superior, had to take over personally.

When they arrived at the camp, they finally found a village that had not been burned down, because there were only young and strong men left here, and they also seemed to be ready to join the army. Solovyov did this in the territories of Smolensk and Vyazma to avoid trouble in the future.

But he also kept saying, "Vyazma, Vyazemsky, Vyazma. Are you peasants from the Vyazemsky family?"

"You are right, sir. Our village is the property of Prince Peter Vyazemsky."

"Speaking of which, your prince is the one who wears glasses, is a little fat, and speaks slowly and methodically, right? He also likes to write poetry. We should be pen pals!"

"Yes, our master is young and likes to write poetry."

"That's right, Mr. Karamzin is probably your master's brother-in-law."

Although Karamzin's wife was an illegitimate daughter, her status was actually not high.

"Yes, he is our uncle, and he has gone to Moscow now. He is very knowledgeable, but I am always worried about his manuscripts."

Karamzin probably did not forget the manuscript of his "History of the Russian State" even during this time of war.

But as a "conservative and enlightened landlord", he still arranged the affairs of his family properly, leaving the young and strong to join the militia, or directly serve as stretcher bearers for the passing army, rather than leaving them to the French.

It's better than burning it down. There are still some places near Vyazma where people can hide between swamps and forests. The guerrillas may have great potential here in the future.

But this was just Solovyov's own idea, and he was also ready to have a good rest here.

Otherwise, if I really catch a cold and can’t play in Borodino or Moscow, it would be a big loss.

But when he got here, he found that Bagration had arrived before him.

"Mishka, come and warm yourself by the fire. If you catch a cold like the unfortunate Polozkin, I might not even have a capable assistant."

"It's for warming up by the fire, but you have to give me hot water. It would be even better if there's broth."

"I knew it. It's not ready yet. I haven't even had a drink myself."

Solovyov looked at his entourage and saw that only Chief of Staff Saint Prix and several adjutants were warming themselves by the fire in the room.

"Will this rain slow down the French march?"

"Your uncle has been chasing us relentlessly, especially after joining forces with Barclay."

When Solovyov was a lieutenant colonel and a regiment commander, he was in competition with Saint Prix. If it weren't for his relationship with Bagration, the position of commander of the Guards Chasseurs might have fallen into his hands.

Just look at their current status, they are actually quite close. If he hadn't gone out to lead the troops, he would probably still be in the staff position.

This job just makes people uncomfortable.

And the workload was huge. He had just been preparing to issue orders to the 2nd Army in accordance with Bagration's instructions.

"You happen to be here. The 8th Army will be deployed along the Old Smolensk Road, and you will serve as the rear guard."

"We're just defending all day long. If this continues, we'll be on the defensive all the way to places like Mozhaysk and Istrinsky, which will probably be closer to Moscow."

He did it on purpose. No one here is an outsider, and he was also trying to test Bagration's attitude.

"It seems that you are also a little angry."

But Bagration seemed somewhat calm, which was a bit strange.

"We followed Barclay's instructions. We almost had problems in Smolensk. If we had relied on Smolensk at that time... Sorry, I know that I might offend everyone when I say this."

Criticizing the offensive action offended those generals who actively advocated war, such as Bagration. Criticizing the deployment offended those who advocated scorched earth tactics, such as Barclay, which was always not a good thing.

But I also have to talk about the relationship between Bagration and myself.

"It doesn't matter, we are the only ones here."

"Well, if we change the commander-in-chief, we may still have hope, but I'm worried that the person we arrange will not be good enough."

"It doesn't matter. The general who will serve as the commander-in-chief will arrive in two days."

"Who could it be? We have been in retreat. It would be fine if we wrote a letter home, but it would be difficult to send a letter by mail."

At this moment, even if he was well-informed, it would not be easy to deal with. Moreover, a French officer who was captured earlier also confessed that the French army decided to launch an attack, and it was Napoleon who intercepted a private letter from a Russian officer or even a general, which led to the complete exposure of the deployment.

"You don't have to ask around. It was Mikhail Illarionovich who came here."

Bagration also felt a little strange when he saw Solovyov's expression.

"Why? Isn't this a good arrangement?"

"It's nothing. I just thought that there are always some people in the salon who are like chameleons. One moment they might say that Count Kutuzov is old and dim-sighted, and the next moment they might praise him as a prestigious veteran."

"It's very similar to them, but we can always avoid some of the mistakes Barclay made before. He always lets us do what we want."

Yes, Kutuzov is actually not as energetic as he was a few years ago, when he could still interfere with operations at the front.

Although this 67-year-old veteran is still able to command operations with his rich experience, he needs help.

Bagration did not know who would be the chief of staff at this time, but if Bennigsen were to come.

Based on this person's previous experiences, he will more or less express his opinions on some issues.

In the future, this headquarters will become a place where old foxes and young foxes fight each other.

Solovyov didn't want anything to happen to Bagration, if he could just get through it and escape the disaster in Borodino.

Maybe there will be some changes in the future, but that is not something he can consider.

Even he himself is now at the front line. If he were really in Borodino, who knows what would happen?

The Russian army's left wing is destined to pay a high price, but it will also inflict a heavy blow on the enemy. Its own position is very forward, so it probably will not be immune.

If it were someone else, why would they always have the same experience as if they were cheating?

Not only is the battle here very dangerous, the opponents are all full-level elite monsters and various dungeon bosses, and there is also a group of old foxes fighting on my side. (End of this chapter)