Shadow of great britain

The majestic oak door of the English Club, with its polished brass knocker, reflected the faint winter sunlight.

Arthur patted the thin snow on his cloak and entered the main hall under the leadership of the servant.

As soon as the door opened, a burst of hot air mixed with the aroma of tobacco and black tea rushed towards me.

The club's hall was decorated as exquisitely as ever, with several oil paintings depicting British countryside scenes hanging on the walls, and oak bookshelves filled with classics shipped from London.

It can be seen from these works that although "The British" has a large circulation in Britain, the subject matter of fashion novels is still not as distinctive as classical literature.

Shakespeare's classic works "Hamlet", "Othello", "Macbeth", and "Henry V" are all available. Milton's "Paradise Lost" and "Paradise Restored" are also must-read books here. British historical novels Walter Scott, the originator of the book, is also highly sought after here, and his "Ivanhoe", "Surprise Wedding" and "Kenal Worth" are all placed in conspicuous positions on the bookshelves.

The arch-enemy of "The British", "Blackwood" was even more successful in Russia. Arthur just glanced at it and saw the three giants of the Lakeside Poetry School.

William Wordsworth's "Lyric Ballads", Samuel Coleridge's "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner" and Robert Southey's "The Lady of the Lake", these three books are ranked next to Byron and Snow Right below Rai's work.

In the hall, several gentlemen were chatting animatedly around the coffee table by the fireplace.

Arthur heard some discussions about Maslenitsa. The Austrian counselor, who had a close relationship with him, was waving a cigar in his hand and said in a joking tone: "The Russians really like festivals. They burn scarecrows with such great fanfare every year." , as if winter would run away in fear."

Another younger gentleman continued: "But I have to admit, their pancakes are really good. I tried some this morning. The golden pancakes with caviar are definitely the most anticipated thing during the festival."

Arthur smiled slightly, took off his top hat and nodded to them as a greeting, and was then led to the reading room by the waiter.

The atmosphere here is quieter, and a few club members are leafing through newspapers or books.

Arthur's eyes scanned the latest newspapers on the table - last month's "The Times" reported on the fluctuations in London's financial markets with eye-catching headlines, while "Moscow Telegraph" was all about Maslenitsa. ’s content, there’s even an entire section on how to make the most authentic pancakes.

"Sir, what do you need?" the waiter asked respectfully.

Arthur nodded and said: "A cup of earl gray tea and some pancakes. I want to try the delicious food that they say is as golden as the sun."

When the waiter heard Arthur's choice of tea, he couldn't help but squint and smile: "Would you like Twinings or Jackson's Earl Gray tea?"

"Twinnings." Arthur sat on the sofa next to the fire and picked up the newspaper: "Although our Prime Minister Earl Gray used to be a supporter of the Jackson Tea Company, now he has switched to drinking Twinings. And I I also feel that Twinings’ Earl Gray tea has a stronger citrus flavor than Jackson’s.”

The waiter bowed slightly and said, "I understand, please wait a moment."

Arthur spoke again: "Where is Mr. Pushkin? Why didn't you see him?"

The waiter replied: "Today is the first day of Maslenitsa, which is also the day of meeting. According to Russian tradition, today we have to visit relatives and friends, and Mr. Pushkin is no exception. But don't worry, he made a special trip yesterday. I said hello to the club and said that you might come today. You can chat with other gentlemen at the club and have lunch by the way. Mr. Pushkin should be finished by three or four in the afternoon at the most."

When Arthur heard this, he finally understood why there were not many Russians in the huge Petersburg British Club.

It turned out that most of the locals had gone to visit relatives. On such a day, the only foreigners who came to the club early in the morning were him and the Austrian counselor, who had no relatives in Petersburg.

Of course, not all diplomats have nowhere to go today.

For example, Arthur's boss, Count Dalamo, and the Austrian minister, Count Fickelmont, and other leaders of the diplomatic missions from various countries, were basically invited to attend the court ball held by the tsar today.

However, it is not impossible for the second-in-command to be invited to the dance, but that is basically a special situation.

For example, in the U.S. Mission to Russia, the former minister James Buchanan resigned, so the counselor can only temporarily perform the duties of the minister as charge d'affaires in Russia.

Arthur couldn't help but sigh that this "Meeting Day" of Maslenitsa divided the local diplomatic circle into two distinct categories: the famous and famous people were invited to the Tsar's ball to drink and mingle, and the "fill-in diplomats" like him You can only hang out in the club for a day and wait for the social party at night.

He looked at the newspaper in his hand again, trying to immerse himself in analyzing the turmoil in the London financial market.

However, the sound of discussions by the fire came into his ears from time to time, like a naughty bird pecking at his mind.

The voice of the Austrian counselor was particularly eye-catching. He seemed to be telling anecdotes about the erotic life of the Petersburg court.

"Have you heard? Many people in the city are talking about the affair between the young Princess Suvorov and Count Wittgenstein."

"An extramarital affair?"

"Well... although there is no conclusive evidence, someone discovered that Suvorova was wearing some new diamonds, and they talked behind her back that this was a gift from Count Wittgenstein. However, others said that giving diamonds It seems that it was in accordance with his deceased wife's wishes. Because his deceased wife and Suvorova were very good friends, Prince Suvorov quarreled with his wife. "

"Ah... no wonder the queen called Suvorova to the palace a few days ago and scolded her. Is it because of this?"

"Not only the queen, the tsar also reprimanded Suvorova immediately. Suvorova cried when he said it. While crying, she defended herself, 'Your Majesty, I am young, I am lucky, and I have always been praised by others. That’s why people are jealous’ or something.”

"Ha! Even excluding the diamond thing, Suvorova's behavior all along can be called inappropriate. I used to think that this lady was not very smart and was a reckless and frivolous woman. I hope this time things will turn out well. I can give her a heads up, and I hope she won’t cause any trouble in the future.”

"Do you know anything about Princess Turkistanova?"

"Are you talking about the princess who died in the palace without any explanation?"

"Oh, there are so many ambiguities. This thing is very clear. Turkistanova was a court lady a long time ago. She had an affair with the former Tsar Alexander I and Prince Golitsyn. Later, she The princess also made her pregnant. The princess admitted this to the emperor, and the Winter Palace took the necessary measures to allow her to give birth in the palace to avoid suspicion from the public. While reading the Bible to her, she was found unconscious in bed. She was later moved to another room and died there. The empress was very angry when she found out about this and had several palace doctors punished. It was the Tsar and the Empress who teamed up to kill his lover, so they publicized the matter and made it known to everyone in Petersburg. It made the Winter Palace even uneasy during Maslenitsa."

While listening to this chat, Arthur calmly turned over the newspaper in his hand, pretending that he was not interested in these palace anecdotes.

But in reality, he wished he could have his ears stretched out a few feet more so that he didn't miss a single detail.

"This happens every year in the Winter Palace." The Austrian counselor shrugged: "His Majesty the Tsar is inevitably troubled by these romantic affairs. However, the Maslenitsa dance can always make people temporarily forget their worries - at least I heard Said, this year’s ball is more luxuriously decorated than last year.”

"Yes." Another gentleman agreed with a smile, "This year, a huge ice sculpture was erected in the center of the ballroom. It was carved from the natural ice of the Neva River - a double-headed eagle with spread wings, symbolizing Russia's Majesty and glory.”

The waiter came over with Arthur's pancakes and Earl Gray tea, and carefully placed the plate in front of him: "Your pancakes, Twinings Earl Gray tea."

Arthur smiled and thanked him, picked up the teacup and took a sip. He closed his eyes slightly and felt the rich citrus aroma filling his mouth, along with the gentle aroma of tea, which seemed to make the noisy club suddenly quieter.

At this moment, the door was suddenly pushed open, and a cold wind rushed in with snowflakes. Arthur looked up and saw a familiar figure wearing a heavy cloak walking in quickly.

It's Pushkin.

"Sir Arthur!" Pushkin saw him at a glance, took off his hat, revealing his iconic curly hair, with a warm smile on his face: "I thought you would sleep until the afternoon."

Arthur put down the teacup, stood up and shook hands with him: "Mr. Pushkin, it seems that you have a very busy Maslenitsa."

"It's so busy that it makes one's head spin." Pushkin said with a smile: "It's not easy to find an opportunity, and I can finally hide here."

"Are you going to the social party tonight?"

"You mean the one held in the palace?" Pushkin asked the waiter for a cup of tea: "If it is not necessary, I don't want to participate. There are many villains who have a bad relationship with me who will appear there. I It would be awkward to go there.”

Arthur asked: "Are you talking about Bulgarin, the editor-in-chief of "Northern Bee", Polevoy and Sveniying of "Moscow Telegraph"?"

"No, I would rather cooperate with Bulgarin and the others than those who appeared tonight." Pushkin asked: "Do you know Arakcheev?"

Since Arthur has conducted in-depth investigations into the Russian military garrison system, he is certainly not unfamiliar with the name of the inventor of the garrison system: "I remember that he was your minister of war, right?"

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"That's a total villain."

Pushkin kindly warned: "If you go to a party, remember to keep your distance from him, so as not to ruin your good mood. You simply don't know how nasty things he can say with his foul mouth. Can you imagine? Would a person say in front of the crown prince that the emperor would always return to the queen disheveled after doing his job? "

Arthur couldn't help frowning when he heard this. If it was true what Pushkin said, then Arakcheev was not only a bad person, but also a rotten person.

Even Elder would not be able to say such insulting words to his parents in front of a child.

Arthur replied: "I am even more surprised that he was not severely punished for saying such things."

Pushkin said helplessly: "In fact, he has not been punished. At least he is no longer as important as he was during the time of Alexander I. Although the emperor still retains some of his duties, he no longer has much real power in his hands. Even he They all moved away from Petersburg and lived in the family estate in Novgorod. In the past few years, I can only see this old guy on occasions like Maslena."

Having said this, Pushkin seemed to have remembered something, and said again: "And I find that you seem to have a misunderstanding about Russia, just like the Austrian Minister Count Fickelmont. Let me tell you one thing, you must probably be like He was just as surprised."

"What's up?"

"A few days ago, there was a ball at the house of Count Fickelmont. Zhukovsky caught Skariazin, a member of the regicide party, and forced him to tell the story of the March 11 incident (the palace coup that assassinated Paul I in 1801). At this moment, the Emperor, accompanied by Count Benkendorf, happened to meet the prince and his father's murderer in a friendly conversation. At that time, Scariazin took off his scarf. It was with this scarf that Paul I died.

Afterward I spoke of the matter to Count Fickelmont. He told me that he had no knowledge of the crimes Scariazin had committed and that if he had known he would not have invited the man to the party. Still, the count marveled at all the strange things happening in our upper class. The late king Alexander I was surrounded by his father's murderers.

However, I feel that this is precisely why Alexander I did not nip in the bud the young conspirators involved in the Decembrists during his lifetime. Judging from various sources, the Holy King has long been aware of the activities of the Decembrists behind the scenes, but he has maintained a considerable degree of silence and acquiesced in their private collusion. Because in Russia, almost all czars had to be patient and tolerant towards these groups who secretly conspired to kill the king.

As for the current emperor, he may be the first emperor in Russian history who has the power and possibility to kill regicide parties or groups who conspire to kill regicide. "

Speaking of this, Pushkin's emotions seemed a bit complicated.

Although he was not included in the Decembrist list, he actually maintained good relations with the Decembrist leaders.

The biggest reason why he did not participate in the uprising was simply because he was not in St. Petersburg that day, but in a penal colony.

For the purpose of protecting Pushkin, the leaders of the Decembrists reached an amazing tacit understanding. They did not include Pushkin's name in any contact document. During the preparation period before the incident, their plans were also concealed from Pushkin to prevent him from being involved.

After the uprising failed, no matter how Count Benkendorf pressed him, none of the Decembrist leaders such as Pestel, Ryleyev, and Kakhovsky relented, and no one admitted that Pushkin was involved. The Decembrists.

Because of this, although Benkendorf wanted to kill Pushkin, a poet who was closely connected with the Decembrists, he could not produce any physical evidence, so he had to give up.

The new Tsar Nicholas I took into account the domestic impact and adhered to the principle of making the best use of everything. In order to calm the aftermath of the Decembrist uprising, Pushkin, who had great influence among Russian liberals, was pardoned from exile. Back to Moscow.

It is hoped that through a gentle policy, this famous national poet can be won over, so that he can lower his profile and serve the tsar's court properly.

However, judging from the current situation, although Pushkin accepted the kindness education of the Tsar, his transformation was not successful.

But for Arthur, he didn't care whether Pushkin's transformation was successful or not, because what worried him more than Pushkin's successful transformation was that he discovered a hidden danger that he had not noticed before.

Although he was also a man of letters, Pushkin's political leanings were significantly different from those of Heine and Herzen of Moscow University.

Heine and Herzen were both classic liberals, so it was always easy to discuss issues with them because you didn't have to worry about them leaking something to the government that they shouldn't. Even if it is leaked, they themselves will be the first to be unlucky.

If we want to take examples of factions in the Russian literary world, Heine and Herzen both belong to the typical Western faction.

As for Pushkin?

Arthur suddenly recalled the debate between Pushkin and Western representative Chadayev that he had seen in the newspaper.

At that time, he thought that Pushkin was simply trying to complete the tasks assigned to him by the Tsar.

However, based on recent observations and information from around the world, it can be seen that although the Tsar would censor Pushkin's works, Pushkin could choose the subject matter he wanted to create at will.

And the conversation just now basically explained Pushkin’s position.

If you place him in Russia, Pushkin may be called a left-wing liberal, but if you analyze it in detail, Pushkin can never be called a pure Westerner. In many aspects, his position is the same as that of the Slavophile.

In other words, this is not a liberal, but a nationalist.