Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796

When spring arrived, letters from Petersburg to major Russian regions began to invite some famous Russian figures to participate in court social activities. Prince Dmitri Volkonsky received an invitation letter from the Kaluga Grenadiers Regiment Command sent by a messenger to his wife's estate.

"Rather, this is the Emperor's edict, Misha, how did you harvest this winter?"

"It's good, sir, but you don't have enough books here."

"So you want to be a bookworm? At your age, it should be time for that, right?"

"What are you talking about?"

But according to Prince Volkonsky's description, it seems to be a feeling of "spring is coming, everything is revived, and it's the mating season for animals again", especially Solovyov has a baron title and is the eldest son in the family. He should always consider this aspect. In winter, the Duke also wrote a letter to Sergei Osipovich in the countryside of Ryazan to learn about the baron's family situation. The baron is now a widower. His wife died a few years ago. He only has a son and a daughter. However, he is planning to remarry recently. It is said that the woman is a young French woman, but the lady's name is not mentioned in the letter.

"Your father is really brave to marry a French woman at this time!"

"Sir, I can't interfere with what my father does. He is free to do what he wants. And, you know, sir, he has a good relationship with the people in the Navy Department. I heard that this lady was rescued from the Barbary pirates when the Black Sea Fleet was cruising in the Mediterranean. However, considering the current tense relationship between France and our country, Admiral Ushakov brought all the rescued women to Kherson."

"There is nothing wrong with doing this. Wrong, but your father."

"He is like this, I have no choice. I can come out to be an officer, which is much better than waiting to inherit his estate at home and waiting to die."

Dmitri Volkonsky was very satisfied with the adjutant's answer. Those dissolute young men who waited to inherit the family property just because they had a title would eventually spend all their estates and inheritances. Of course, there are also bad examples. Prince Bagration was a gambler when he was not fighting. Even his master Marshal Suvorov could only smile helplessly when he mentioned this.

The second lieutenant could be promoted to lieutenant this year, that is, in 1797, and his annual salary would also be increased accordingly, but he only had two sets of uniforms. When the Solovyov family was doing smuggling business for Prince Menshikov, Peter the Great found hundreds of thousands of rubles in corruption and other illegal gains. There were also some rewards that were not found, and there was always a considerable amount. Solovyov was one of the heirs to the family property, so he would not be so "shabby" anyway.

"Misha, you have to change into a new outfit when you arrive in Petersburg. You can wear your duty uniform at General Grushetsky's house, but in Petersburg, you have to wear a grenadier's uniform that looks more stylish, even for a short grenadier officer."

"Sir, that's because the grenadiers are too tall. They are stronger than bears."

Speaking of which, Solovyov's appearance was considered a normal height at the time, but compared with the grenadiers, he was still a little shorter. In addition, his father was going to remarry, and the other party didn't seem to be much older than him. It was always awkward to be together like this. Fortunately, it wasn't a few months ago that old Sergei was going to take Mikhail's stepmother to Moscow. If that was the case, the scene might be even more awkward. At that time, Solovyov couldn't even speak French well, so he would definitely suffer in the upper-class interactions.

"Just like this, Misha, I'll find a tailor for you when we get to St. Petersburg. You're such a fool. As a superior, it doesn't matter if you spend some money on your adjutant. Don't always be like a squirrel and hide the nuts!"

Prince Volkonsky was naturally more generous. He didn't have to worry about saving a dowry for his daughter. He had been married to the Duchess for many years but had no children. Although he was well-off, he could only let his nephew inherit the family business in the future.

This made him quite envious of the Solovyov family's many brothers and sisters. If the baron's original wife had not died of puerperal fever when she gave birth to Solovyov's sister Yulia, Sergei Solovyov's brothers would probably have several sons, but Mikhail was older and the others were not yet of military age.

And to make a beautiful set of grenadier officer clothes, finding a tailor in St. Petersburg is naturally better in craftsmanship than finding one in Kaluga, and is more trustworthy than those invited tailors. After all, those who serve in St. Petersburg are all big shots.

On the way to St. Petersburg by carriage, Solovyov also saw the estate of Marshal Suvorov near Novgorod. Prince Dmitri Volkonsky originally wanted to visit the marshal, but there were Russian soldiers guarding the main intersections to check documents. The marshal was free in his estate, but people entering and leaving were restricted and checked. Emperor Paul was obviously resentful of the old marshal's ridicule of his "Prussian Drill Code", but seemed to be taking some measures. After all, this was the most outstanding general he could use at present, and he could not completely exclude the old man. Otherwise, he would have been demoted like some of the empress's favorites when she was alive, and even deprived of the right to wear military uniforms and their annual salary.

"It's a pity that Alexander Vasilyevich is in this situation now. His son is in St. Petersburg and his daughter is married to the brother of the Empress's favorite minister. If he says something unfavorable to the Emperor's military reform at this time, he will definitely be in trouble."

"Sir, he will be an 'empty nester'."

"Empty nester?"

Soloviev's original words were "nid vide, vieil homme", a combination of words, empty nest and old people, but after explaining it, it still makes sense.

"Your Highness, it's probably an old man whose home is empty and whose children are not around."

"It's really interesting, Misha. If you are in Petersburg, don't always use some 'creative' words. Your French is improving quickly. Otherwise, if an adjutant arrives in Petersburg and can only communicate in German, he will be a 'horseman'."

Duke Volkonsky is relatively tolerant of adjutants. If you are an adjutant to Marshal Kamensky, you will inevitably be whipped. That is the most difficult adjutant position in Russia. If you are with Emperor Paul, at least if he sees that you are training and working hard, he will reward you with a gold coin or something else. For Marshal Kamensky and his eldest son, the whip is the theme.

The prospects of a "horseman" in Petersburg are not optimistic. Grenadiers are a high-risk profession. Whether it is a soldier or an officer, if you can survive on the battlefield in the rain of bullets, you are a warrior, but it is impossible to be lucky every time.

How Oudinot, who seemed to be a "bullet catcher", could die in bed is another question.

Even being an adjutant in a grenadier regiment was not an easy job. Who knows when bullets and shells will suddenly fly over? On the battlefield now, bullets are still blind, and there is a little random movement, which is even worse than 100 years later. After all, at that time, as long as you didn't expose yourself outside the trenches, you would not be in big trouble unless the shells fell.

Even the commanders of regiments, half-brigades, brigades and divisions were not so safe on the battlefield. Sometimes, when a shell came, he didn't care whether you were a master or a soldier, and you would be smashed into a pulp. It was common to be confused.

"I understand, and I need to learn more skills, sir."

"Yes, the emperor's order has come down, and I will live in St. Petersburg for a period of time, maybe a few years. Although you, the adjutant, are in the regiment, you have to follow me to St. Petersburg, which is also a good thing."

The situation in Russia is different from the countries where the anti-French alliance is fighting. Even recently, they have not fought large-scale wars with several neighboring countries, the Ottoman Empire and Persia, and are in a temporary peace stage. The Russian nobles are still speaking French and tasting fine wine in the salons of the upper class as in the past. As for food, there will definitely be no British food (but there are British-style gentleman clubs everywhere). The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is an exception), considering that there are many Nordic and German people in the Russian army, it is not surprising to have sausages, beer, pork elbows and sauerkraut.

"Misha, why do you like to make fun of those German officers so much? Remember to be respectful in public sometimes. Moreover, the emperor is still severely punishing those who discuss his military reforms. His Excellency the Marshal, as a senior commander, can hardly avoid it, and you, a second lieutenant, should not say too much."

"Yes, sir."

It's just that Solovyov's idea is different from what Prince Volkonsky expected. If he knew what this kid was thinking, he would not be surprised, because there is a one-eyed old man in St. Petersburg who also plans to do this.

After arriving in Petersburg, Duke Volkonsky went to his residence, which was not far from where his nephew served, and was also close to the Imperial Village. As for Solovyov, he actually had a residence in Petersburg. The owner whose head was smashed had a memory of it. When Prince Menshikov was still in power, their family had their own mansion in Petersburg, but it was not large in scale, and it had a long history. At No. 4, Laundry Lane, when Peter the Great began to build a new capital here, the first batch of "apartments" built had these old houses, and from the outside, it looked like it had been renovated.

The servants in the mansion did not expect that there would be a young master from the Ryazan family, but the house was well managed, because the master said very clearly that he married a French wife again, and the family had savings, so it had to be made beautiful, and it could not lose points in the scene. After all, the cousin of the new lady also married a noble master in France, and it was true that it could not lose points.

"So, that's it, young master."

"It costs a lot, what is my father going to do?"

Soloviev could clearly feel that this was much more than what old Sergei spent when he sought an adjutant position, or when he was a local governor or a member of parliament. Even if he married a countess or even a duke for the first time, he would not spend so much, and it even included furniture purchased from Britain and Spain, which had not experienced war.

If this continues, let alone the current family property, which is worth hundreds of thousands of rubles, there is also an annual income of 50,000 rubles and various annual salaries, as well as a considerable fortune from time to time. It seems that life is not bad. When this master goes to the land of lush grass and water, he may owe a sum of money. If this is still the original Solovyov, he will inherit the debt directly, which will be a big trouble.

The two dukes will not know about his family affairs. The Volkonsky family, which has been passed down from the Rurik era, has relatively rich assets, and the various branches are closely connected. It is not a problem to help pay off a small debt. However, the Solovyov family is a new noble family mentioned when Menshikov was in power. When their titles are strictly examined, they are easy to lose. As for when the emperor is in a bad mood, he will be demoted or imprisoned directly, which will be a big trouble.

Even so, Admiral Duke Nikolai Volkonsky was still impressed by his grandfather, the "master of fraud". The correct term for this is "prosecutor", but in the judicial process, there are not a few people who have been prosecuted and fined. If someone wants to make money, it is not difficult. Moreover, this has been a practice in Russia since the Golden Horde. However, the old duke still has to be decent in his eating habits. He will not be like some nouveau riche and tax farmers who squeeze people out of their bones, so the duke's family has a good reputation.

In order to thank the old duke for taking care of the Soloviev family, there is even a portrait hanging in Sergei Soloviev's reception room. After Soloviev saw it, he could only say that he was impressed.

"The faces of this duke's family are really easy to identify, they all have thick eyebrows."

"Yes, young master, many people in the Volkonsky family have this kind of thick eyebrows."

From the feeling, they all have the same feeling of "your noble ancestor", and this family is indeed closer to servants and serfs in the manor than other nobles, but they are not like Tolstoy later. This is just a kind of noble lord showing kindness, not studying this topic.

"Well, since the decorations at home need to be new, Uncle Fyodor, you are still like this, you have to clean it up. As for my place."

"The master also ordered that the rooms of the young master and the young lady should be replaced with new ones."

"Replace them with the cake-like bedding and pillows? Just prepare them for Yulia. I only need a camp bed in my room. Also, here are 100 rubles. I know you can't read, uncle. Go buy me the things on this list. It should be about 95 rubles plus some kopecks in change. You can keep the change yourself. Your son can't be without money when he wants to marry a wife."

"Thank you, young master. Even if you went to the army, you haven't changed at all. You have a good heart and calculate accurately."

It seems that I have a similar temperament to that unlucky guy who was hit by a brick or a flower pot, right?