Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

Table Mountain is a spectacular sight, but not exactly beautiful.

The high altitude of this place made Katya feel somewhat tired during the climb.

Mikhelima, on the other hand, had always worked as a personal maid before she was slept with by Solovyov and subsequently became pregnant and gave birth to a daughter. Even though her mistress was lenient with her, she continued to work.

Therefore, she was in good physical condition. Solovyov walked ahead with his trekking poles, and she followed closely behind.

The children were left in Cape Town with six fluffy cheetah cubs, which was much more interesting than the plush dogs and teddy bears at home.

Just like when these twins fought as children, it was all to get closer to their younger siblings. Lisa would use her mouth, while Pashana would use her legs, and the two "little rascals" would wrestle together.

Now each person has three, and they seem to be having a lot of fun.

Katya was too tired to walk any further, so she leaned against a rock. Although she had attendants behind her, she didn't really want them to serve her.

This was also a calculated move; she wanted to gauge her husband's attitude.

"Katya, are you unable to walk anymore?"

"Yes, climbing such a high mountain makes my legs ache."

"Let me take a look."

Solovyov handed the trekking pole back to Mihrima and went to check on his wife.

"My legs are a little numb from walking."

"It's alright, I'll carry you up the mountain. You're the one who told me we had to get to the top, you silly girl."

When I carried her on my back, I felt the soft yet elastic touch of her thighs, and the sensation on her back.

At that moment, he actually said something that seemed out of character for someone with his emotional intelligence.

"Katya, you've gained weight."

When the couple were together, Solovyov would often hug her or carry her on his back, not to mention their intimate interactions, sometimes with Katya's back against the wall.

He used to be careful with sweet talk, but now he's saying such strange things.

For 25-year-old Katya, a mother of five, she is still very young. In the past, as a dancer, she inevitably had to be careful about her diet.

She still looked very good in terms of her figure. In fact, when she was pregnant with her first child, Solovyov was even a little worried when he saw her big belly.

Now there's no need for that, but Katya's expression changed slightly. Before she could even react with her coquettish tone, the perpetrator had already realized the problem.

"But you are still very beautiful, you are my wife, and you have sacrificed a lot for me and the children. I know you loved dancing at the court balls, but what about now?"

"As your wife, it's my responsibility to make you feel at ease when you go out. How's that girl? I've heard her talk about her, but I haven't heard you say how you feel."

Well, it's probably because when her stepmother moved out with her father, she kept coming to their house every few days, which influenced Katya.

Solovyov thought to himself: You are my wife, how can you think like this?
But he couldn't say that; he could only go along with his wife's wishes.

"She's a good person, just a little reserved, like when you first married me."

After she said that, Katya immediately blushed.

This master and servant pair are probably quite similar.

"It's embarrassing for someone to bring up this kind of thing at a time like this."

“Shall I carry you to the top of the mountain? You’re not like that girl, who’s always working and never stops even when she’s on the boat.”

Once you reach the top of Table Mountain, you will be able to see a magnificent and spectacular natural landscape.

Whether it's crashing waves, an endless plain, or the unique vegetation on the mountaintop, the lush and dense forests, and the animals here.

For example, the meerkat.

Some of the little guys were quite wary there.

Solovyov also enjoyed observing these animals. He thought that if there were no war, he might be a good naturalist. However, the African interior was too dangerous, with many terrible bacteria and viruses, as well as various poisonous insects and wild beasts.

The meerkats watched them warily.

"These little creatures are really interesting. But future explorations in Africa may be a challenge for humans, such as exploring the source of the Nile River and seeing animals roaming the African savanna, like lions hunting."

Of course, there might be birds of prey on the summit of Table Mountain, but there won't be any wild beasts.

Solovyov came here hoping to see the magnificent scenery that has not yet been developed by humans.

Now that we've reached the summit of Table Mountain, which is 1500 meters long and over 200 meters wide, we can see down below, even with binoculars.

"It would be even better if there were hot air balloons."

"Mishka, didn't you arrange for a hot air balloon on the ship?"

"Yes, but that was for the Chinese emperor."

Katya also wanted to go up into the sky to see things. Although hot air balloons can be dangerous, she wasn't afraid.

Speaking of which, another branch of the Dolgorukov family had a daughter-in-law who was one of the first generation of pilots in Tsarist Russia.

Solovyov was unaware of this, but if he had, he would probably have complained about his wife's audacity.

So it turns out your family likes to go to such high places.

The couple hasn't reached their first tenth anniversary yet, but it's almost time for them to return home.

“I think you should adjust the settings so we can get to a higher vantage point. Africa is so far away; we rarely have the chance to come here in our lifetime. The children might have that opportunity in the future.”

When Solovyov massaged her feet, she kept acting cute and coquettish, as if she had quickly returned to her little girl state.

In fact, this kind of wife, who is tolerant of her husband and devout herself, seems to be the type of lively young woman in Russian noblewomen's circles.

"Okay, I promise you. You have blisters on your feet. After you pop them, you'll need to bandage them up, it'll hurt a bit."

Katya dances frequently, and while her feet are beautifully shaped—long and well-proportioned—they also have calluses on the soles from dancing. The fact that these calluses are so bad suggests that the shoes worn by wealthy women need some improvement.

If it were a sporty style, it might be even better.

However, he was on top of Table Mountain, giving his wife a pedicure.
On the way down the mountain, fortunately there was a small path and a rope, so Solovyov tied Katya to his body and they went down like that.

Mihrima, that girl, is surprisingly good at climbing; she was doing it when we went up the mountain.

When they descended the mountain, they moved with a light and agile gait, unlike the Solovyovs, who always had to use their riding boots to step on the large rocks, because the couple were now tied together.

However, even though Katya was tied to her husband like that, she held on tightly and refused to let go.

“Mishka, we’re together again now, and I really enjoy relying on you.”

"Yes, but there will be hot air balloons next, so don't be scared then."

"I wasn't scared at all when we got to such a high place together. There won't be any problems even if we're on a hot air balloon, and we won't fly too high."

Solovyov knew that Katya's trip was a rare opportunity, so he was able to tolerate her little bit of capriciousness.

"Let's try it again, it's quite a wonderful experience."

The hot air balloon has been opened and is ready for assembly; this is also a kind of testing session.

Solovyov wanted to show this off to demonstrate the power of Tsarist Russia. Previously, there was a hot air balloon at his father-in-law's estate that had never taken off and had been discovered by the French.

Even if Emperor Jiaqing was oblivious, he probably would have realized that hot air balloons were a good means of flight, or at least a magical contraption that allowed him to get up high and see the world.

This time, Katya and Solovyov will also be riding in a hot air balloon, which can carry four people into the air.

In addition to the operator, it can also bring one other person.

So Katya brought Mihrima along, and after the operator lifted the hot air balloon into the air, they were able to see some wild animals on the ground, since they were on the edge of the grassland.

When they took off, the weather wasn't like Cape Town's usual stormy weather; the airflow was slow and stable, and the hot air balloon they were in could see nearby African tribes and Boer farms.

Outside the farm, there are lions, and you can even see several lionesses hunting through binoculars.

The target is zebras, which are very dangerous when they kick, but are also a primary prey of lions.

Besides zebras, there were also quaghas that had not yet gone extinct at this time.
“Mishka, the lions are hunting over there, and oh dear, they’ve succeeded.”

The wife was quite excited watching the lion hunt.

Solovyov knew that even the granddaughter of the Army Commander-in-Chief, no matter how ladylike she usually was, would inevitably feel excited at this moment, and she could also smell the blood.
"They succeeded. This is truly amazing Africa."

However, after Mihrima saw it, she was still muttering to herself.

The wife and concubine had significant differences in personality and behavior.

Solovyov was glad that he wasn't the man from Qi who boasted to his wives and concubines (from Mencius, a man from Qi who had one wife and one concubine), but someone who actually had some skills.

"May God protect that creature from suffering too much."

Having grown up in that kind of environment since childhood, she only began to live a normal life after unexpectedly coming with him. However, having seen a lot of bloodshed, she has some pity for wild animals.

It's quite dangerous to take this thing out to sea, since strong winds and waves are common around the Cape of Good Hope. In winter, Table Mountain is sometimes shrouded in clouds and fog, which makes it safer.

After enjoying the beautiful scenery and "testing" the hot air balloon, they returned to Cape Town.

The situation of the local indigenous Black people is relatively good, but if you go further into Zululand, there will probably be many more warlike Black people there.

Solovyov will likely meet with the chiefs of Zululand on his return journey. Right now, he's waiting for Sukoff's fleet while they stay in Cape Town to gather intelligence on the South Atlantic and surrounding areas.

After completing their mission, their return journey would likely be easier, and Solovyov believed that autumn would be a more suitable time to meet the Chinese emperor.

Back then, if one went hunting at the Mulan Hunting Grounds, one could probably demonstrate to Emperor Jiaqing what real skill was.

Surcouf's fleet did not enter the port and anchor after arriving at Robben Island; only Surcouf's own ship entered the port.

Solovyov had never met pirates or privateer captains before and had assumed they might be bandits.

But Sukoff's attire made him look every bit the gentleman.

"It's a pleasure to meet you here. I've also heard that you caused the British a lot of trouble in the Indian Ocean in the past."

"But nothing has changed. As long as the British battleships come, our frigates and privateers are helpless. This is not the era of Baron Jean Bart, when we could chase after the British and beat them to a pulp."

"You lack money, they lack honor, don't they?"

"Haha, you know I said that."

“When I went to Ireland with the Duke of Clarence in the past, he mentioned during the trip that the Royal Navy could only find victory against the capital ships of the French Navy, and it was very troublesome to deal with privateers.”

"That duke is a good captain, it's just a pity he never met us. Otherwise, we could have captured a duke and taken him back to their mad king to ransom his son."

Sukoff still wants to pull off something big, though he's just saying it.

"So what's your opinion on going to China? If possible, I would suggest that you use an island in the Pacific as a base to operate in the waters of Southeast Asia, although for now you're just doing trade. But if you ever go to war with the British again in the future, you can assemble a fleet. Or if Russia takes action against Persia, you can come through places like Aceh or Johor to cooperate with the Russian army and navy."

"Does your plan involve bringing the entire Earth into the battlefield in the future?"

"But there are still some places we are not familiar with, such as the blank areas in the south. Rear Admiral Bellingshausen is very interested in that area. Perhaps one day he will be able to cross that dangerous sea and find the frozen ocean or a continent in the south."

He pointed to Bellingshausen, his tone still assertive, indicating his confidence in his position as the Navy's second-in-command.

Although the occasion is somewhat delicate, Bellingshausen truly is one of the two captains who first discovered Antarctica, along with Mikhail Lazarev, and the commander of that fleet.

However, because Alexander discovered that the expedition was not as he had expected, he did not provide funding to publish the expedition's materials.

In a way, Alexander was sometimes like Paul, even exaggerating the aspects of stinginess and tolerance.

As for the rest of the journey, Solovyov still needs to consider how to operate in the Indian Ocean. (End of Chapter)