Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

"Sir, you've given too much."

"You deserve it, this steak tastes good."

Jerome's tip was also very generous; after the waiter took the money, he muttered something under his breath.

"Those Englishmen aren't as quick to pay as you are, sir. They're still using Dutch guilders."

"The British have been here?"

"They were still talking at the table, discussing what to do next."

"Those British people were so careless, discussing military secrets in such a place, and you overheard them?"

"The British officers weren't all British; there were Germans, mercenaries, and their Dutch allies, the Orange gang."

"Yes, it's understandable. But what exactly did you hear?"

"Sir, they mentioned the movements of the Prussians, which seem to be heading towards Wafl. Because of the distance, not every sentence was interrupted."

"Wavl?"

Jerome never expected that he would have such an unexpected gain here.

Even British officers mentioned that the Prussians were moving toward Wavre.

With that in mind, Jerome stopped worrying about everything else.

He finished his meal in a hurry, got into his private carriage, and headed to the emperor.

Even Grouchy, Vandham, and Gérard haven't gone very far.

If Napoleon wished, he could still have the French forces advance towards Namur, ensuring that any Prussian troops they encountered did not escape Grouchy's sight.

They turned in the fields and headed in the direction of the Prussian retreat, or took another route.

"Demid, what are you doing now?"

“Uncle, I’m reading the letter Octavia wrote to me. She’s worried about me, and she’s worried about you too.”

“This girl will marry you in the future. A ceremony in a church is one thing, but if we want to have a civil wedding, in addition to the officiant, we will probably need an elder. Your father passed away early, so Davu or your uncle can be your guardian, and I can be Octavia’s elder.”

Yes, theoretically it's not wrong either.

Regardless of the complicated relationship between Napoleon and Solovyov, or the close relationship between Polina and Silvia, who actually adopted Octavia as her daughter, it wouldn't have been a problem for Napoleon to show up if the woman's father was unlikely to be present.

In terms of specifications, it always exceeds them by quite a bit.

"But that's not the important thing. You're always so impatient when you eat, which isn't good. Besides, she hopes the war will end soon and that I can go back and be with her."

"Yes, she still looks like a little girl, I mean psychologically, but physically she's almost mature, just like her mother."

"Yes, but she's also very scared. After all, it's her first time having a baby, and she's gained some weight. She's worried that she won't look good anymore and that I won't like her in the future."

“Demid, the oath you made to her is quite different from the oaths we old folks make.”

The implication is that Demid swore to Octavia that he would always love her.

"How did you know?"

“I heard you two making out in the woods.”

Demid blushed a little as he said this, and he really should be ashamed. Because he had used so much force, Octavia's breathing was rapid, and her shouts were so loud that they could be heard even from a distance.

“Your mother wrote to me, and she was very angry about what you did. You can be intimate after you get married, but Octavia is willing to be with you, which is good, and we can disregard other people's opinions.”

With Napoleon backing his nephew, there was no problem with the matter.

The truly outrageous thing is that Polina, from the age of seventeen or eighteen when she married Leclerc until she is 35 this year, has done far too many absurd things, especially going out to hook up with men.

If it weren't for her actions back then, Napoleon wouldn't have sent Leclerc to Saint-Domingue to avoid the scandal from escalating.

Before marrying Prince Borghese, she also established a "friendship" with Solovyov. If it weren't for her older brother Joseph mediating, something else would probably have happened.

Fortunately, Polina gave birth to her third son, Camillo, which prevented the unreliable prince from protesting too much. Although they were separated, the bills they had were astronomical and had to be settled together.

Next, there are other things to do.

However, Prince Borghese, Napoleon's second brother-in-law, got along well with Jérôme, and Jérôme even introduced him to mistresses.

Although she wasn't exactly a troublemaker, Polina always found her own men, though after having more children, she became more stable in her relationships. But Jerome, that unreliable guy, and her most unreliable brother-in-law were kindred spirits, which was never a good thing.

Just as he was thinking this, Jerome came in.

"Brother, I've heard some important military intelligence. Would you like to hear it?"

Napoleon was inwardly complaining about his brother's unreliability, and then Jérôme said this.

Even Napoleon himself was stunned, thinking, "Is this really my brother?"

My lecherous, playful, extravagant, and pleasure-seeking younger brother has grown up?
Shocked, he gestured for Jerome to sit down.

"Tell me about the current situation, Jerome. Can you find out any important information?"

"I was in the 6th Division. On the way, I stopped at a restaurant for a meal. Two British officers had been eating there before, and the waiter overheard them. Although there was no indication of British movements, the Prussian army was moving towards Wafl, which he heard very clearly."

Is the source of this information reliable?

Napoleon didn't really trust information from his servants, but Demid took his uncle's words to heart.

He then turned to Marshal Soult and said, "Your Excellency, I don't think the Prussians will go to Namur."

“You’re still young, Demid. I’m worried about your lack of experience; making the wrong judgment could cause problems.”

"But the information was accurate; the British did indeed pass through the area of ​​the 6th Division."

Sirte remained noncommittal, wanting to see how the emperor would judge.

The emperor himself did not believe Jerome's words at first.

This younger brother is so unreliable, causing such a mess. "The Prussians will retreat along their supply lines. They are now extremely short of supplies. They have already used up a lot of ammunition in Ligny. To replenish their supplies, they will have to go to Namur and Liège. Even if they have to detour and rendezvous with the British, it will still take time."

Based on his initial impression and the reports from the cavalrymen Soult had sent to pursue them, Napoleon was more inclined to believe his previous assessment.

After all, the cavalry had indeed captured a group of Prussian soldiers who were wandering aimlessly, and had even seized cannons.

Jerome, however, was just repeating what he'd heard from a waiter.

Therefore, he shook his head and smiled, rejecting Jerome's opinion.

But then Demid stepped forward and produced a report by Sadie Cano.

“Your Majesty, you should consider this matter carefully. Prince Jerome is quite right. The British are heading towards Mont Saint-Jean, and may even return directly to Brussels. They will certainly need to contact the Prussians during their operation. You should not underestimate the Allied forces, as you did in 1813.”

Demid was, after all, the eldest nephew, and he usually spoke with a certain amount of confidence. This was because the emperor doted on his sister and felt somewhat indebted to his brother-in-law for dying young, so he always allowed Demid to be somewhat disrespectful and to address him as "uncle" regardless of his status as the emperor.

However, today this kid actually mentioned his two uncles in such a serious tone.

As for Sadie Cano's analysis report, although it looks like a mathematical paper, it is not without reason.

Demid himself is an excellent communications officer, and his future development is uncertain.

But his communications office contained a group of young prodigies from École Polytechnique and École Normale Supérieure.

When Sadi Cano was brought to Demid, many of his classmates and his father's students were not employed, so they were all brought to the Emperor's headquarters.

This is also considered military service, but unlike being sent to the front lines where you never know when you might get hit by artillery shells.

The headquarters and the staff are better able to play their roles.

Kano's idea was actually quite simple; his analysis report was more like a logistics analysis.

"Dermid, you actually believe this?"

"Even if we defeat the British, they will retreat. If the two armies meet between Brussels and Antwerp, along with the Dutch troops coming from the Netherlands, they will still be a reliable force. They can even establish new supply lines in the Low Countries through Antwerp and the ports of the Netherlands, allowing the British to use their naval advantage to transport supplies. In fact, the opponent we face is much more troublesome than a purely land-based one."

"Child, you mean those planks placed on the sea are called a boat?"

“Your Majesty, you must not underestimate them. I think General Drouot is probably the most qualified person here to speak on this matter.”

Yes, Drouot had worked at sea before, and he was indeed present at Trafalgar's humiliating defeat, and was one of the survivors.

Artillerymen are always needed, especially when firing cannons at sea.

No wonder Drouot always pushes the cannons forward; at sea, it's like the artillerymen opening the gun ports on one side of the ship—a real man's heavy artillery brawl.

“Yes, Your Majesty. I think Colonel Leclerc is right. Ships can transport much more supplies, and the whole of Holland has such ports, like during Prince Louis's reign.”

Napoleon was actually a little angry when Louis was mentioned, after all, the boy was siding with the Dutch and opposing him.

But he's just another younger brother; whatever he did before was nothing more than causing trouble.

"Jerome, can you guarantee this information?"

"Of course, Your Majesty. You can also summon the waiter and the restaurant owner for a face-to-face confrontation. If I'm lying, you can strip me of my inheritance and send me back to America! And forget about finding a beautiful mistress!"

Goodness, this is quite unique to Jérôme. He still has a wife in America, although Napoleon forcibly separated them. But the American woman is leading her son, eagerly waiting for her husband to return.

Jerome was good to both his wives, but when they were together, he was somewhat prone to getting bored with the old and seeking new ones.

But to make sure he can never find a mistress again is indeed a rather harsh vow.

For Jérôme, not having pretty girls by his side was worse than being tortured.

When Napoleon heard this, he burst into laughter.

“This is the funniest thing I’ve heard all year! Jerome, have your adjutant fetch the waiters and the restaurant owner. I have something to ask them.”

While Napoleon was arguing, Grouchy had already led the right-wing cavalry, along with the troops commanded by Vandamme and Gérard, to search for the movements of the Prussian army.

However, the Vendée rebels were left with Napoleon's side. They suffered little loss and their morale was high, having received a substantial reward for defeating the Prussian army.

This force thus became a vital addition. Lamarck was with them, and the troops he had originally commanded were also on their way from the French border to Belgium, some distance behind.

The emperor summoned a servant, and after confirming that what the servant said was true, his expression suddenly became serious.

“Soult, draft an order. Instruct Grouchy to stop advancing toward Namur and go to Wafl, even if there are no Prussians along the way, to proceed parallel to this direction.”

"Your Majesty, what if Grouchy goes too far?"

"He must march at full speed. No matter how many men are able to move, even if only one division reaches Vavr, it will still be a victory!"

Napoleon suddenly realized his mistake and tried his best to make up for the losses caused by the previous series of errors. He also issued orders very quickly.

Grouchy's faithful execution of orders did not contradict his initial opposition to the emperor's division of troops.

Even when he received the message late at night, he wasn't overly shocked.

However, Napoleon wanted him to go to Wavre, and he had been considering the issue of turning around.

Late that night, Grouchy also wrote down his opinion and intended to inform Napoleon.

If we were to reconstruct history, Grouchy would have changed his mind and pursued the enemy in parallel towards Wavl, eventually encountering the Prussian army after Waterloo and achieving a tactical victory, but unfortunately, it was too late.

Now, Napoleon has ordered him to change his marching route, but his objectives have changed again.

Since he opposed the division of troops from the beginning, and even stated his opinion in front of the emperor.

Now, Grouchy is preparing to move between Wavre and Waterloo.

This sudden change has even created huge variables.

Wellington had already reached Mount Saint-Jean. Unaware that the Prussian army's movements had been exposed, he simply focused on fortifying his position there.

A crucial battle at Tianwang Mountain, which should have determined the emperor's ultimate fate, seems to be shifting, though those involved are unaware of the extent of the changes. (End of Chapter)