Struggle in Russia

Count Uvarov suddenly lost interest. As a staunch patriot, he hated any behavior that undermined Russia's traditional order. For him, tradition was the best.

And now that Russia's greatest traditional order is facing dual threats from liberal elements and mobs, why don't you think he is heartbroken?

What made him even more unbearable was that he couldn't do anything to improve the situation. Alexander II didn't like him, and his younger brother gradually turned his back on him, which was a double torture for him. In an instant, the good mood brought by Feodora disappeared completely.

Feodora became worried when she saw her old father's obvious depression. She heard that her old father had not been in a good mood recently, so she returned to St. Petersburg from Moscow in advance, just to make her old father happy.

Who would have thought that it would backfire now? She should not have mentioned that serf's son if she had known it!

"Did I say something wrong? Dad. I will never mention that person again, please don't be upset, okay?" Feodora said coquettishly.

Count Uvarov touched Feodora's head lovingly and sighed slightly: "It's none of your business, and it's none of that person's business. Your father is not that fragile. This little thing affects Can't help me! What really bothers me is the mob...Forget it, they're not exactly mobs. You don't understand these things, and you don't need to understand them...Tell me something else, why did you suddenly meet that...that person named What's that? Vishniak, right? That's the right name, right? Why did he suddenly save you?"

Feodora observed Count Uvarov's face and found that her old father's mood was relatively stable before she slowly replied: "When passing by the town of Ofdot, the local serfs... the mob got up to make trouble and grab things. They were crazy. They attacked the squires and nobles, even the female relatives. Although our guards were very strong, they were too many in number. Just when we thought we were unable to withstand it, Wei...that man arrived with a group of cavalry. When they arrived at the scene, they dispersed the mob cleanly and rescued us..."

Count Uvarov thought for a while and asked: "Did he see the badge on the carriage? Did he know it was you?"

Feodora shook her head and said: "I was riding in Alexandra's carriage, not the family's car..."

Count Uvarov nodded and said, "So he didn't know it was you who was saving him?"

Feodora hesitated to speak: "It should be, but..."

"But what?" Count Uvarov asked.

"But I heard from other rescued squires that he didn't go out of his way to save people. It seemed that he had saved many people who were attacked by mobs along the way."

"oh?"

Count Uvarov showed a thoughtful expression. He initially suspected that Vishnyak had bad intentions and thought that saving Feodora would please him, so he worked so hard. But according to Feodora, there was no difference in someone's saving behavior, which surprised him.

The reason is simple. Although Count Uvarov does not pay much attention to this illegitimate son, he still knows who Vishnyak is getting close to. His friends are all reformists or liberals, and if nothing else, he must be on the reformist side.

The Reform Party is sympathetic to the mob, and has always tried to cut off the flesh of their noble blood to feed those despicable bugs. Count Uvarov even believed that the raging mob was connived by the reformists and was used to blackmail the central government into carrying out reforms.

But Vishniak, a reformist, protected the squire who was threatened by the mob. This is a bit weird. Has this guy's conscience discovered it? ..

Count Uvarov thought for a long time but couldn't figure it out. He could only blame Vishnyak's behavior on an accident.

"What happened after that? Did he recognize you?" Count Uvarov asked.

Feodora shook her head and said: "No, he doesn't know me. After saving us, he just asked us to leave as soon as possible. His main energy was on those mobs."

Count Uvarov once again showed an unexpected expression, because as far as he knew, Vishnyak was definitely a love prodigal. He should be unable to walk after seeing a beautiful woman. There was no reason to see Miss Alexandra and Fiodor. Can't you show much kindness?

But this time, the dog changed to eating shit. What's going on?

Count Uvarov subconsciously thought there was a conspiracy here, but Feodora said: "He arrested the mob, then interrogated them carefully, and in the end only arrested those who had committed crimes, and released all the others. He also warned them that there will never be a next time. If they commit the same crime next time, the most severe punishment will be waiting for them..."

Count Uvarov subconsciously sneered. He felt that such gentle methods were useless. The only way to deal with the mob was to use violence to fight violence. Only by completely eradicating them could the country be stable.

Expecting to bribe them with warnings or small favors is simply wishful thinking. This will not solve any problems, but will make them become more and more unscrupulous.

"This is connivance in disguise. It is impossible for these thugs to repent, let alone wake up. As soon as he leaves, these people will definitely have a solid start. It won't be long before they continue to attack those innocent squires, and they will even intensify their attacks!"

Feodora nodded and said: "That's what I said too, but he said that these people were forced into desperation and took this step. If the squires didn't squeeze them so hard, who would do this kind of thing?" matter?"

"He also said that if the status quo is not changed and these people are not given a way to survive, more and more serfs will take risks. At that time, what happened in Austria and Hungary a few years ago will happen in Russia... And now We don’t have an enemy we can count on to help save our lives!”

Count Uvarov was immediately speechless, although he insisted that Vishniak's words were too alarmist, because Russia would never become Austria in 1848, and the Russian army and military police could wipe out those unarmed people in minutes. of mob. But he also had to admit that the danger exceeded his initial expectations, and the current situation may be worse than he imagined.

Count Uvarov actually has no solution to the bad situation. As a conservative aristocratic boss, he must first safeguard the interests of his own class. The Crimean War not only made the lives of the serfs worse, but also worsened the situation several times in a row. Taxes also hurt the nobles and greatly reduced their wallets. You can't let the nobles who have suffered huge losses continue to bleed out for the lives of a few serfs, right?