Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

Alexander wanted Nicholas to stay here during this period of time, while the army was also resting, in order to make him give up.

Although Solovyov was one way when marching and fighting, his training in peacetime was another matter.

That is to say, he always took over troops during wartime or troops transferred from various places, so the soldiers did not feel any pressure.

In addition, the Russian army retreated all the way from the border to Moscow, and then chased here from near Moscow.

Perhaps the most difficult part of the journey was the march and the lack of supplies.

Solovyov asked everyone to stop and rest first.

In other words, the veterans who came from the regiments he had led knew that their general was usually very strict in his duties.

But it seemed that the adjutant he brought back today was one more.

"Your Highness, you can stay here now. I have set up a camp bed in the study room inside, but the mattress is very soft. I will get you a suitable bed."

"Boss, you are too polite."

"You can't call me that in the army. You have to know that you are an adjutant now. Don't think of yourself as His Royal Highness the Grand Duke for the time being. You will get used to it after a while."

"Well then, General."

Nicholas got into the role quickly because he was simple-minded and very enthusiastic, and probably had no bad intentions.

However, these characteristics make it easy for them to make mistakes stubbornly and be deceived. The good thing is that when he wants to do something, as long as he thinks it is reliable, he will probably stick to it.

It is hard to judge whether this is a good or bad thing in the end, and we have to work with him in the headquarters.

What was more troublesome was that, because Nicholas was the Grand Duke, and Solovyov probably knew that he was the actual heir to the throne, Constantine was disgusted with the throne, and he would assist him wholeheartedly regardless of whether he was his younger brother or nephew.

Even if it weren't for this, he probably wouldn't be allowed to watch the gate, and he would only be allowed to sit at the second table at the door.

The person in charge of reception is Petya. Although he is naughty, he is still very serious when he is an adjutant.

But there was a Grand Duke sitting next to him, which made him feel a little uncomfortable.

"Petya, where are you from?"

"From Ryazan, your highness."

"You can just call me Kolya. If you want to call me Your Highness, wait until the boss comes out and he can see and hear you."

Grand Duke Nicholas was the commander of the Izmailov Regiment, so he was actually a general. It was not surprising that he was a general on duty.

But having no experience at all is not good either.

Regardless of his identity, Petya is still only a second lieutenant, so he has to follow certain rules.

But Nicholas felt a little uncomfortable. His strange temper was actually similar to Paul's, but not completely.

After all, Paul sometimes listens to advice, and when he really gets into trouble, he will hand the problem over to professionals.

But Nicholas was a bit stubborn and insisted on sticking to his principles.

Therefore, Petya had no choice but to do as Nicholas wished. Even if the other party was not considered a grand duke, just an adjutant on duty instead of a general, his status would probably be higher than his.

It was because he joined the army after the war broke out. If Solovyov hadn't asked him to come, he might still be a sergeant who had just joined the army.

Solovyov was also a little tired at this time, so he went into the house to rest, while Nikolay was chatting with Petya at the door.

"Your family consists of a father, a mother, a brother, and two sisters. Is your brother also in the army?"

"Yes, my brother's name is also Nikolai. He is in the Pavlograd Hussar Regiment. When I heard about him in Moscow, he was out shopping for horses. I think he will join the Rangers later. My brother even made contributions, but I only received a commendation for delivering orders."

"That's not bad. The boss is also my teacher. He always taught me some interesting knowledge, such as 'no reward without merit'. It's like this, you shouldn't get reward without corresponding merit. Although I was born a grand duke, I think I always need to make corresponding merits to match my status."

"You actually think so?"

"Yeah, I can't just do nothing."

"No wonder. Your Excellency's speech is sometimes strange. It sounds like he is quoting from classics. He is very knowledgeable. No wonder the Countess is fascinated by him. At the same time..."

"You know it all?"

"I know a little bit. Your Excellency always mentions these things when he encourages the soldiers."

“Ah, no wonder.”

Nicholas is a bit stubborn. If he thinks of a girl he likes right now, it would probably be Charlotte, and there is no one else at the moment.

However, Nicholas could not accept the lifestyles of other Russian nobles, even his royal brother and master.

Even in his opinion, there should be a more normal lifestyle, now it is too French.

This is different from Paul. Paul still allows his subordinates to be more successful outside. Even between father and son and brothers, there are differences.

Then Nikolay asked about Petya's family situation and then asked a question.

"Petya, do you have a girl you like?"

"The Countess's sister Sonya is very nice, but..."

Nicholas is a kind-hearted man who has been helping his master with matchmaking since he was a child, although at the time it was just the innocent words of a child.

"But what?"

This is too much like Paul, except that although Nicholas is very enthusiastic about helping to introduce people to each other, he will also consider whether they are suitable, the family situations of both parties, and other things.

"It's not easy to get a dowry for my sister. I've also heard from the housekeeper that my mother and father had a fight over the family's income over the years."

"Your father, Count Ilya, was once the leader of the nobles in Ryazan Province. How could your family be short of money?"

Nicholas did not react at first, and even wanted to say something related to making money, like the Governor of Kazan, Count Ilya Tolstoy, who was complained by the nobles of Kazan, but the matter was temporarily suppressed.

Nicholas only heard a general idea of ​​whether it was related to making money. Although he could already attend the royal meetings, there were some things he should not be involved in.

"That's right. You always have to spend money. Being an official is expensive. Dad is a kind-hearted person. He really won't be like the Governor." "It's rare to find such a kind-hearted person to take on this position. If it were someone else, according to what the boss told me before, I'm afraid he would pluck a feather from a wild duck even if it flew over."

Well, he learned well, but sometimes when he spoke, it sounded a little strange.

He then turned the conversation to Solovyov's sister-in-law.

"I don't know how this lady is doing now. I remember that she was about my age. The Countess was a dark-haired beauty, and..."

Nicholas thought of something, but didn't say much.

When he arrived here, the Russian troops happened to stop to rest, so he felt a little more relaxed.

It even seems that he is still the "stupid son of the landlord" who is here to experience life at best.

But he could also learn something here, and it was impossible to keep him from doing anything in the army forever. After all, the grand dukes still had to play a role in public affairs and missions assigned by the Tsar, not to mention that he was now the de facto first heir.

Another thing to say is that since his two older brothers have no sons, this position will be his sooner or later.

There is no problem in cultivating it in advance.

Even the soldiers felt very friendly when they met the Grand Duke.

But this prince, whose beard hasn't grown yet, is indeed ridiculously tall. There is a big difference between him and Petya when they stand together. Even when Solovyov came, he was the shorter one too.

Some of the grenadiers were even saying, "Our prince is really tall. He would definitely be a good officer if he were to join the grenadiers."

The 3rd Army was still temporarily responsible for the order in Vilno at this time, so it still had some tasks to do. Even when some intelligence was transmitted, it always had to go from the 3rd Army headquarters to Kutuzov's headquarters or the Tsar's residence.

The French had completely retreated and left Russia, and the follow-up Russian troops were also advancing towards the border. By December 1812, 12, when Napoleon was traveling from Russia to Paris in a carriage, the French army had almost gone.

He arrived in Paris and admitted defeat in the Grand Army Communiqué. At the same time, he had the audacity to "declare peace", claiming that "France will no longer initiate war on its own initiative." Although such words sounded strange, it seemed that he had no intention of doing anything.

However, the news that was conveyed has already aroused the interest of many people.

Letters from Berlin indicated that some Prussian officers were ready to take action, but when they would take action would depend on future developments.

But the King of Prussia has not yet expressed his opinion. King FW has always been like this. He is always hesitant in doing things.

The queen herself did not express any attitude, which is very strange.

The letter was quickly delivered to Alexander, and the Tsar himself was not in a hurry to pursue.

The subsequent lagging troops are still on the way, and in addition, supplies need to be transported. It is impossible to rush in directly without supplies.

Therefore, many people were waiting near the border.

Some veterans were also sitting there chatting by the campfire, and some were even changing their boots.

"See? These are new boots. Our carriage has arrived here too. These old boots have accompanied me from Grodno to Moscow and back again. Now I have to say goodbye to them. When the time comes, I will go home wearing these new boots. I will be very proud of myself."

"Don't be too happy too soon. We have reached the border now, but what will happen in the future? That bastard has run back. Maybe we will have to fight again."

"What evidence do you have?"

These two veterans seem to be getting serious about this.

"The Emperor is here. He came to inspect the army before, and we have fought so many battles with the French since then. The Emperor is here again now, so I think we have to fight more."

"Ah, but the old boots are in. After all, these new ones are more comfortable."

After changing the shoes, the new shoes were indeed very good for the soldiers because of some problems with the old shoes.

But it seems unlikely that I can wear these boots home.

The French were in chaos. Murat, a fool, quickly threw these defeated troops into a mess, causing Davout and Ney to complain all day long, and finally even Junot and Reynier joined in.

However, because of Murat's identity, after he left, when Eugene led these remnants of the defeated army, people felt that although most of the troops were gone and Eugene had no experience in commanding more than an army, at least a normal person had come.

In this way, the army can still operate, but it still has to continue to run.

As for the Russian army, the first direction they are prepared to take action is probably to enter Poland.

This seems to be the strategic situation before the outbreak of the War of 1812.

But because they are waiting for the arrival of follow-up troops, the Russian army is still gathering on the border.

Alexander was also asking for the opinions of the generals at the ball. Some young generals advocated an attack, but Kutuzov was still cautious and was still delaying time.

But he himself didn't know how long he could last like this.

The Tsar's own will was unshakable. He believed that to defeat Napoleon, at least a peace treaty that was beneficial to Russia was necessary.

Although it seems that they are following Napoleon's path, we also have to consider that if Britain wants to do this, it is not just the British that is fighting.

The Sixth Anti-French Alliance is only a matter of time. However, due to the attitudes of Prussia and Austria, probably only Britain and Russia will join it now, and they have not directly sent troops.

At this stage of winter, the only troops active at the front were probably the cavalry.

The Cossacks and Hussars were highly mobile, and they also had to go into Poland.

As the Polish army was almost exhausted, some places in the eastern part of the Grand Duchy of Poland almost surrendered.

It seemed that the end of Poland was probably just a matter of time, but some troops could still be mobilized from central and western Poland, and some Lithuanians also joined the French army.

Napoleon would have continued the war. He went back to rebuild his army and said he would return.

There was just one problem. Once he left the battlefield, he always made wrong judgments and even micro-managed. He said that Danzig and some places, including Königsberg in East Prussia, could not be lost, and places where French troops were stationed must also strengthen their defenses.

He also conscripted young men of military age in 1813 into the army ahead of schedule, and in some places even the elderly and retired soldiers joined.

As for the policy that allows rich people to pay money or find someone to serve in the army instead, it will also be used to make more money.

It seems that the war is far from over.

(1812 Fin) (End of this chapter)