Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796

Chapter 218 030 You Gauls are really aggressive (Part 1)

The embassy is sometimes boring. Soloviev knows that Count Morkov’s main task now is to conduct bilateral negotiations with France. After the signing of the Paris Peace Treaty, some minor issues were involved.

However, there are not many remaining issues between Russia and France, and it is said that French Foreign Minister Mr. Talleyrand’s recent focus is not on the relationship between France and Russia, but mainly on the implementation of the Treaty of Amiens, and.

"Lieutenant Colonel, so during this period, we have nothing to do, and there are no further instructions."

Then, there was nothing to do. Soloviev has always been by the side of the Tsar and knows that Mr. Talleyrand is very greedy for money, and the offer of 200,000 rubles should be no problem.

But now there is no opportunity to use these 200,000 rubles on Mr. Talleyrand.

Soloviev now has only one thing, to go to the rented apartment at 205 Montmartre Street, pack up personal belongings, and start writing there.

If he could publish an article in a Paris newspaper under another anonymous identity and get attention, that would be great.

Moreover, there are some places to go in Paris, such as salons hosted by noble ladies, which are very suitable for spying.

He also knew that he could get some information from some actresses in the theater. Although the count did not give him an order, the task assigned to him by the Tsar before he went out required him to have some acquaintances in Paris.

That is, when he will be useful in the future, such as when the Cossacks enter Paris, but this is also a long way off.

"Pierre, come and see, what will happen if such an article is published in a newspaper?"

"Let me see. What you wrote is very interesting, but Paris is not suitable for publishing Caesar now, but Brutus is more suitable."

"Interesting, but I just want to write some interesting stories, such as a contemporary Frenchman who appeared in Gaul in 50 BC, or an Italian's magical experience in Rome, such stories with some gimmicks and some humor."

"You are very knowledgeable, Baron, but you also have to adapt to the audience in Paris."

Pierre's suggestion is not unreasonable. Some bestsellers are actually only popular for a while, and finally they are out of the limelight, but that's it, there is some fun in it.

"But listen to me, the story of an alchemist is somewhat absurd. Today's Parisian audiences should like some pseudo-Roman stories. At least in my opinion, they need such stories."

"But in Rome, only Spartacus can talk about it. If someone makes the rebels become kings in the end, or adopts some system, I think it is inappropriate."

"What are you going to do?"

"I think the first consul should be a person who worships Alexander and Caesar. Whether it is a republic or an empire, the stories behind them are actually very interesting."

"You mean those, I mean the great figures who inherited their careers?"

"The difference is that after Alexander, it was torn apart, while Caesar had Octavian, the sacred Augustus, to help him complete his final career. Of course, after Augustus, there was Tiberius."

In general, he was not optimistic. After all, Napoleon's posthumous affairs were Caesar, Hannibal, and Alexander. All three of them.

Moreover, he was also very interested in this great man and wanted to meet him at a suitable time.

However, the First Consul had no intention of summoning the Russian ambassador, so he, the military attaché of the embassy, ​​had no chance to appear.

Another reason for his performance was that he was still very popular among girls of this era because of his handsome appearance and talent.

Especially when he was with Louisa, he had met many girls. The maids in the palace had a good relationship with him. When he was not on duty, they often discussed historical stories and poems together.

Being with them, he could still accumulate a lot of experience. If he could get the favor of some young ladies and girls in the salon circle, whether in a secret identity or an open identity, it might be effective.

Speaking of which, there was no difference between this matter in Paris and St. Petersburg, and although Solovyov himself did not take the initiative to do such things, he was able to steal the heart of the queen in St. Petersburg, which did have some technical content.

Even after Soloviev left, Louisa stopped receiving letters from potential suitors. After all, the poem was so powerful that it was kept in Louisa's most private bookcase, or even in a jewelry box.

When you arrive in Paris, you can't use the methods of those reckless young people in Petersburg. You always need some literary accomplishment and technical level.

And Paris is indeed a cultural center. No matter whether it is original or translated, publishing any work in Petersburg can't trigger any huge cultural wave in Europe, but in Paris

He really told Pierre seriously what he wanted to write, and Pierre listened seriously.

"I think you should succeed. After all, this way of writing sounds very interesting. I have some friends in Paris. I can show them your poems."

But Pierre should not be familiar with those big names who are too popular. This is different from the situation when he became Count Bezukhov later and someone tried to curry favor with him.

"Maybe I should try and go to the salon myself. I don't know if the rules in Paris are the same as elsewhere, or if these rules are established in the literary salons in Paris."

"You can try, but..."

"I know, Pierre, there are rules everywhere, maybe in Petersburg and Moscow, too, right?"

But how to get there is also a problem for him, and the French are very aggressive, so there might be a duel or something.

He thought that his marksmanship was good and his fencing level was average. He might be in trouble when he met a powerful swordsman.

However, when he was in Petersburg, the duel distance was closer than the rules popular in Europe. He only dueled once, but fought many times on the battlefield.

Even if you really encounter some trouble, it doesn't matter.

However, if he goes to places that oppose or support the First Consul in a public identity, it will always cause trouble. It is more convenient to use the identity of "Baron von Stirlitz".

Anyway, when he spoke German, his Austrian accent was so exciting that it was even able to arouse the audience's emotions, although he opposed the Bohemian Corporal's opinion.

The Seine River divides Paris into two, and the second arrondissement of Paris is to the north of the Seine River. This is of course considered "I came to Hebei Province", and it feels great.

As for him starting to send letters, what he can think of is to find a lady close to his age. If it is Madame Stael and Madame Tarien, they are both of the same age group as the First Consul's wife, during the Directory period. Among the "Three Graces", there is Mrs. Recamier who is younger and very good-looking, otherwise she would not be called a goddess.

The other two have already been mentioned.

Josephine had always been a striking lady in society, and the best part was that Solovyov really had no idea that she was his unrelated aunt.

Solovyov is already 21 years old. His fake identity in Paris claims to be 25 years old, but he looks a bit too young, and he doesn't need to take care of his beard. He is indeed very beautiful.

And he didn’t know that Elena once joked: “If Mishka was a girl, she would have her own salon if she was so talented.”

Moreover, the entry standards are quite high.

But he never thought that he would be hit on the street just after leaving 205 Montmartre Street to send a letter.

"What are you doing, sir? You're in a hurry. If you don't watch the road, you'll always get into trouble."

As a Parisian, it's always a little strange. Solovyov's tone was very polite, but the other party actually thought that Solovyov had offended him.

"But you have to pay attention, sir. Although I am from outside France, I also live in the second arrondissement of Paris. I have a decent job and income, and I also have a title. You are also dressed like a gentleman, sir, I think. At this time, we should resolve this problem peacefully. This was just an accidental collision. You were not looking at the road."

"Who said I didn't watch the road? You are a barbarian from Alemany, or you are a Viking. I want to challenge you to a duel!"

"Sir, did I hear you correctly? If you want to duel, I have to remind you that I once served in the Prussian army and was friends with the son of the Duke of Brunswick."

Speaking of which, both the old Duke and the "Black Duke" got along well with him, especially the latter. After all, he risked his own life to save his father-in-law and almost lost one of his arms. - Carl Luther Vichy's tonnage was there, and it was indeed dangerous.

But the title of the Duke of Brunswick, although he was the youngest among the famous generals during the reign of King Frederick, was also the nephew of old Fritz, but in the "old man's happy" confrontation between Valmy and Kellermann , and made him a joke here in the Republic.

"I think it's nothing big, so don't think about mediation."

"Sir, I advise you not to do this. You should rein in the situation, especially if you use a gun to duel."

After all, his revolver was banned in the Petersburg duel. It has high accuracy, good firepower sustainability, and just the right lethality.

It's just that the other party doesn't know his identity and uses a pseudonym, which makes it even more confusing.

Russia is always considered a barbaric place, or it is the countryside, or it is a traditional stereotype of Parisians.

French people look at foreigners, or provincials, or provincials look at Parisians, all with stereotypes.

The duel was inevitable, but before that, Solovyov decided to mail the letter, which contained some outlines and the initial content of the story he had written.

The lady's salon, which hosted not only poets, but also novelists, philosophers, painters and sculptors, as well as Parisian officials and generals, was located on the original Jacques Necker residence on Avenue Mont Blanc, and also passed by It is carefully decorated in an "Etruscan" style.

It's just that if you want to send a letter "submission", you also need to deliver it.

The aggressive Parisian citizens are sometimes even wilder than the Russians on the streets, and he encounters several duels along the way, which are indeed a bit ridiculous.

Not since the Gascon man had anyone encountered so many troubles in one day on the streets of Paris.

But what happened in 1625 was a solid harvest of three good brothers who shared life and death. Solovyov was obviously not so lucky.

It was just a letter to Madame Recamier, introducing himself and the outline of his "epic novel", not that he was going to help his friend find all the coffins of his parents, so there was no need to shout and kill.

D'Artagnan provoked three people, and Soloviev was even more exaggerated. He counted and found that there were six people this time, and they had to fight in Butte Chaumont within one day.

"This is not good, Max, you provoked six people in one day, and it is very troublesome to cause so many duels."

"Pierre, don't worry, I have six bullets in my pistol, which can hit them directly at the maximum distance of the duel, which is not a big deal. One bullet per person, I will never give them a second chance."

"This is not good, if you really need it, if you really need a friend to help, I think I can go with you."

Although he was lucky, Soloviev was unwilling to let him take risks.

"Well, my dear strong friend, if you are really worried about me, please help me take care of Adela. I hired her as a maid so that she would not live with her abusive aunt. If something bad happens to me, you don't have to worry too much, because it is unlikely to happen. Unless, in a duel, I foolishly use a rapier to fight against a master."

"Okay, I promise you, but you have to be more careful. Buttes Chaumont is not a good place."

Soloviev didn't understand it. He had an impression of Paris. He probably knew that Buttes Chaumont Park was a relatively large forest park. What did "not a good place" mean?

He brought this confusion with him, and agreed to be there the next day. According to the schedule, they would fight one every half an hour.

Even if they came together, Solovyov probably wouldn't be afraid. It would just turn into a gunfight, and he had the advantage of firepower, spare bullets and two pistols.

Moreover, he had to duel in the morning, and come back in the afternoon to see if there was a reply from Madame Recamier, and then go to the theater to watch a performance in the evening. When he was in Petersburg, he was on duty for too long, and the rare vacations were spent at Louisa's place, so he rarely went to the theater.

As for the opponents he had agreed to fight, he didn't know what troubles he would encounter this time.