Shadow of great britain

Since Arthur had been discussing natural history with Zubkov, the first secretary of Moscow, all morning, it was almost four o'clock in the afternoon when he showed up at the welcome party specially held for him by the Governor of Moscow, Duke Golitsyn, in the Kremlin banquet hall.

However, this was not a big mistake. According to social etiquette, Arthur, as the guest of honor, had the right to be late for a while.

In fact, if he went too early, it would be inappropriate.

The walls of the ballroom were hung with heavy velvet curtains, the windows were inlaid with colored glass, reflecting colorful light and shadow, the ceiling was covered with exquisite murals of religious themes, and the spacious dance floor in the center of the ballroom was surrounded by rows of seats for people to rest.

The light came from the crystal chandeliers, which hung from the high ceiling, emitting soft and bright light, illuminating the entire room.

The floor was waxed and polished, reflecting bits and pieces of candlelight, so bright that it could reflect people's shadows. In the corner, in the orchestra area, neatly dressed musicians were tuning their instruments, ready to provide the most beautiful melodies for the ball where Moscow's celebrities gathered.

The magnificent "gallery" around the dance floor was decorated with extreme luxury, and 1,500 flower boxes with rare plants formed a fragrant green forest.

At one end of the hall, among the exotic bushes, a fountain gushed out a column of fresh and shimmering water: the mist, illuminated by countless candles, sparkled like diamond dust, refreshing the air, which was always agitated by the dancing.

One might have thought that these exotic plants, including large palms and bananas, all hidden in the flower boxes under a layer of mossy green, seemed to grow in their native land, and the group of northern dancers seemed to be transported to the tropical forest by magic.

It was all like a dream, and the scene was not only luxurious but also poetic.

The splendor of the magic gallery was reflected a hundred times more against the background of a huge gilded mirror.

The hall was tall and stretched half the length of the palace. The magnificent effect of all this can be imagined, but it is difficult to describe in words.

This place is like a fairy's palace. All the concepts of boundaries disappear. There is only space, light, gold, flowers, reflections, phantoms and the rotation of the crowd, which seems to multiply infinitely.

The men's clothes are similar. There are tailor-made tuxedos everywhere. The colors are mainly dark colors such as black, dark blue or dark green, matched with white shirts and bow ties, trousers close to the legs, and a pair of shiny leather shoes on the outside.

Most of the men who serve in the army have the same habits as Emperor Nicholas I. They attend the ball in a neat military uniform. Some people also wear brooches or ribbon rings as decoration.

The women's clothes are obviously more complicated. They are long silk or satin skirts that reach the ground. The styles of the skirts vary, but the most common ones are designs with corsets and wide skirts.

The colors of the skirts are colorful, but most of them are elegant colors such as pink, light blue, ivory white, etc. that highlight the temperament.

To add a sense of layering, they would also wear a tulle shawl or cardigan over their skirts.

The hair of the noble ladies was carefully combed into a complex bun and decorated with flowers, jewelry or feathers.

They wore exquisite necklaces around their necks, and their delicate white or black gauze gloves were embellished with a few emeralds, rubies or diamond rings.

As for what shoes they wore, Arthur could hardly see.

After all, as a gentleman, he could not directly lift up the ladies' floor-length skirts, even if it was not for any dirty purpose, but just to satisfy his curiosity.

Although the guests had not yet arrived, some familiar gentlemen and ladies had already danced for their own entertainment, especially those young men and women who were just beginning to fall in love and were developing private relationships.

Fortunately, there were no strict rules for the dances at the Moscow ball. Arthur took a quick look and found German waltz, quadrille, Polish dance and mazurka, etc. Although Arthur knew nothing about the latter, at least the German waltz and quadrille he learned at the Olmark Club could come in handy.

Of course, Arthur didn't care too much about what dance tonight was and what shoes the ladies wore under their skirts.

He had long thought that Duke Golitsyn would give him extremely high-level courtesy, but such a grand welcome ball still exceeded the basic expectations of the old man who was accustomed to the dirty air in the East District.

Excluding the audience with the Tsar in the Winter Palace that day, this might be the most luxurious place Arthur has ever been to in his life. The grand scale of the Russian ball far exceeded that of Britain and France.

More importantly, compared with playing supporting roles for the Tsar and Count Daramo in the Winter Palace, Arthur was the well-deserved protagonist this time.

Such a high-level reception even made Arthur doubt for a while whether he was the guest of honor tonight.

Moreover, he soon discovered a difference between Moscow and Petersburg, just as Captain Huett had told him.

Moscow balls obviously looked more Slavic than Petersburg balls, especially the beautiful ladies.

In Petersburg, all races were mixed together, so that Arthur could not form a correct view of the real population ratio of Russia for a long time.

At Petersburg balls, you can see all kinds of looks, Germans, Swedes, Livonians, Finns, Kalmyks, Tatars, etc.

Of course, this does not mean that the ladies in Petersburg are not beautiful, but because the blood of these ethnic groups is mixed with the Slavs, the pure Slavic original beauty has gradually degenerated in the capital of Russia.

Many people who come to Petersburg for the first time will have the same doubts as Arthur. These foreigners with pointed heads are contradictory and muttering in their hearts-Petersburg may be the capital of Russia, but it is a bit unlikely that the capital of Russia is Petersburg.

Even Tsar Nicholas I himself admitted: "Petersburg is Russian, but it is not Russia."

The ladies in Petersburg are of course beautiful, but they are not beautiful enough for Russia.

Only at this Moscow ball today, Arthur finally saw the appearance of the group of Slavic beauties that he thought should appear.

The facial lines are soft, the forehead is broad and smooth, the nose is straight and slightly upturned, the lips are plump and curvy, and the chin is short, but round and not sharp.

The skin is as white as snow, and it has a healthy blush under the sunshine.

Straight or slightly wavy hair in blond, flaxen, brown and black, paired with round and large blue, green, gray or dark brown eyes, gives people a gentle and mysterious feeling.

Right!

This is Russia!

Where did I go before?

Thanks to the special favor of Duke Golitsyn, Arthur deserved a seat in the first row of the dance floor.

On grand occasions, these seats are usually reserved for the greatest nobles and senior court officials, who are not allowed to enter unless they are wearing their military uniforms or official uniforms.

In Russia, the best way to distinguish a person's status in society is to see what clothes he wears.

According to the decree just issued in February this year, the official uniforms of officials above the tenth rank have different embroidery corresponding to each other.

For the first rank, there are embroidery on the collar, cuffs, pocket flaps and below, on the sides and bottom of the uniform, and below the collar on the back. For the second rank, there are no embroidery seams. For the third rank, there is no embroidery below the collar. For the fourth rank, there is only embroidery on the collar, cuffs, and pocket flaps. Fifth rank, embroidery is only on the collar and cuffs. Sixth rank, embroidery is only half the length of fifth rank. Seventh rank, embroidery is on the collar and half the cuffs. Eighth rank, no embroidery on the cuffs. Ninth rank, embroidery on the collar and cuffs. Tenth rank, embroidery only on the collar.

If you can't remember so much, it doesn't matter, because Arthur actually can't remember it either.

He simply understood these regulations as underworld rules - the more embroidery on your body, the more powerful you are in the gang.

Only those with neck tattoos (embroidery on the collar) are underlings in the official system (tenth rank), those with two dragons on their arms (embroidery on the cuffs) are qualified to hold a knife (ninth rank), as for those with big flower arms (embroidery on the cuffs), ordinary people can't afford to provoke them (fifth rank), and those with tattoos all over their bodies (embroidery on their clothes) can call a few carriage men to arrange you anytime and anywhere (first rank).

In addition, there are a few small memory points.

For example, the dark green uniform symbolizes a double-flowered red stick (military department), the dark blue uniform indicates that he is a white paper fan (education and academic institutions), and the red uniform represents a distinguished five-star (Council of the Councilors).

Before Arthur's buttocks warmed up the chair, several guests who were chatting and laughing noticed this stranger they had never seen before.

No mistake, one post, one content, one 6, one 9, one book, one bar!

They came up and chatted with Arthur in French with a warm and hospitable courtesy, which is a characteristic of the Russian upper class and, to some extent, applies to all classes.

Everyone here is very polite. The courtesy of big people is out of vanity to show their good upbringing, while the courtesy of small people is out of fear.

After a few greetings, Arthur learned that before the ball started tonight, he had to watch a play first.

But he had already seen that play in Paris, which was Meyerbeer's opera "The Devil Robert".

The play caused a huge sensation when it premiered in Paris. Heine even wrote an article to praise it and successfully received a "deserved" "thank you money" from Mr. Meyerbeer.

However, although "The Devil Robert" has been performed in Paris for countless times, it is the first time that it has been adapted into Russian, so the guests who came here to watch the play today are still in high spirits.

In this regard, the upper class of Russia is very similar to Germany. Anything that is popular in Paris is regarded as a treasure by them.

In terms of court etiquette and social methods, Russians imitate Britain and are fascinated by Britain's so-called modernization.

Russians living in high-level life, especially ladies, will spend time and effort to find foreign fashion models as much as possible.

They are sometimes deceived in their choices, and wrong choices produce a unique elegance - an elegance without taste.

A Russian left alone will spend his life in a fantasy of vanity that cannot be satisfied: he wants to show himself as a gentleman all the time, but in his heart he considers himself a barbarian.

Nothing can hurt the natural character of a nation more than this constant attention to the social superiority of other countries.

And this further hurts their intelligence, so that they often suffer losses in some ridiculous foreign scams.

Is Russia barbaric? Maybe a little, but not seriously.

At least Arthur felt that the Russians he met were all very friendly to him, at least better than his fellow British people in London.

When he was in Petersburg, he did a few ridiculous things because he was not familiar with Russian customs, but both the gentlemen and the ladies were very tolerant of him, or perhaps it should not be called tolerance, it can be called indulgence.

If there is anything wrong with Russia, it is that they treat Russian compatriots much more harshly than they treat him as a foreigner.

And this behavior continued at today's dance.

When the gentlemen and ladies around Arthur heard that he was the British knight entertained by Duke Golitsyn, their enthusiastic attitude quickly evolved to the point of doting.

They asked Arthur all sorts of questions. Several gentlemen with great insights in natural philosophy wanted to show him their research results. The ladies were more concerned about the clothes Arthur was wearing. They praised Arthur's method of pleating the Flack dress that he learned from Disraeli, and expressed their hope to listen to the London pianist's monotonous masterpiece "The Bells".

In just a short while, five or six people had hinted that they wanted to invite Arthur to their homes.

The enthusiasm of the gentlemen and ladies could melt the snow on the roof of the Kremlin. At first, the old man thought that visiting the homes of these Moscow celebrities was a good way to collect intelligence.

However, he soon realized that as long as you agree to the first person, you can't refuse the fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth ones.

Prince Golitsyn hasn't arrived yet, and Arthur's schedule for the next week has been packed, and he doesn't even have time to go to the toilet.

Arthur, who knew he was in danger, had to bring up the topic that the Russians feared the most - he started talking about the Tsar.

"You don't know, when I went to the Winter Palace to meet His Majesty the Tsar last month, I asked him about the disaster that occurred on December 14, 1825 at the ball."

As expected, as soon as Arthur said this, the scene immediately became quiet.

However, although everyone shut up, no one left.

Yes, the Russians are afraid of the topic about the Tsar, but they are also most interested in the topic about the Tsar.

Arthur, who had made a fool of himself, saw that no one asked to leave, and for a moment he didn't know how to continue.

Instead, Miss Helena, holding a champagne glass, took the initiative to speak up for him and said, "Will the emperor talk to you about this topic?"