Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796

Karl rested for a few days and felt that his health was not serious, but he was not idle either. He chatted with Solovyov about the two major battles in the anti-French alliance. What the Grand Duke wanted to know about was Suvorov He will also talk about what happened on the battlefields in Switzerland and South Germany.

When the British proposed it, Czar Paul agreed, but both sides agreed at the time, but the battle plan had its preconditions.

However, no one from all parties could stop Emperor Franz's magical micro-management, which ultimately led to failure.

"You have a very clever mind and you have some ideas. It's a pity that you are a Russian major, not an Austrian major."

"Your Highness, I have no intention of offending the Austrian army. It seems that it is not suitable to start a war within five years. Even if you have 1,000 Major Solovyov, it will not be enough to change the Austrian army."

"I think so, so let's not think about these unpleasant things now. Let's go hunting. Hunting can make people forget their worries. Moreover, my brother-in-law Anton, the younger brother of the Elector of Saxony, is here to entertain us."

Anton married the eldest sister of Archduke Karl, and the Elector of Saxony had no sons. However, Anton and his wife had no children to raise, but he was still the first in line to succeed.

When his wife's brother came to Saxony, he naturally gave him warm hospitality. However, considering Archduke Karl's weird personality, he did not hold a grand welcome ceremony and instead held activities in the countryside.

As for taking Marie-Thérèse here, it was also the idea of ​​her eldest cousin Maria Theresa. Although she couldn't decide anything and she didn't take the initiative to talk to her French cousin, she still took her in out of relatives. This poor girl.

The hunting ground is located in the forest near Leipzig, and there is a river passing through it. Thinking of Leipzig and Dresden, Solovyov has a headache. After all, these are the locations of the two final battles with Napoleon. Even The French almost came back in Leipzig.

He himself didn't expect that he would be on the prancing horse battlefield here in the future, but now he can take a closer look.

"Your Highness, this place is good, and it is very suitable as a battlefield for the main battle."

"I have gotten to know you very well these days, Baron. You are a translator, an amateur inheritor of folk songs, and a brave soldier and duellist."

"Your Highness, I have only dueled once, and it was for the honor of a friend."

"A true knight and warrior, and after a duel, there will be a second one. Just like a person appears on the battlefield, as long as you are alive, there will always be a next time."

Although Archduke Karl did not need to duel with others, his thinking was unique, second only to Napoleon's abstraction, and his ideas were quite accurate.

"Si vis pacem, para bellum. Baron, how is your Latin?"

"I still remember this sentence, Your Highness, although my Latin level is really not very good. And on the battlefield, there is only one rule, you must be good at winning, no matter what means you use."

"What would you think if you were Napoleon?"

"I think the French First Consul will also start preparing for war, and the British will also find ways to enhance their strength. This is peacetime defense construction. Whether it is from the perspective of Austria, Russia, or Saxony From the perspective of countries such as Germany, Mecklenburg, Württemberg and Baden, we should all be prepared. My understanding of the French is that they like to tear up treaties just like the British, but the French use a clever trick, at least that's what it seems, and the British always do things that break their skin. Shedding other people’s blood is so shameless, even hypocrites and real villains don’t bother to do it.”

"It seems that you don't like the British very much."

Grand Duke Karl did not know Solovyov's political leanings. Even after living in Marie-Thérèse's small manor for half a month, he never heard such clear views from his mouth.

"The British may now be planning to plunge us into war. Of course, the French also did not abide by the Peace of Luneville, but they have the power now, and they are still the victors after all. But one thing needs to be noted, that is, the French Our maritime power cannot currently threaten the British, so this is the most appropriate time to take action.”

"It makes some sense. But you just told me to go hunting on the hunting ground. Maybe you can also meet the girl you like, just like I did when I came to Dresden this time."

When Karl said this, he was quite serious. He always had a straight face. It is no wonder that marriage is always not considered.

Of course, he didn't know what Solovyov was doing now. His grandfather had done this kind of thing many times, and it was quite public.

The Elector of Saxony did not attend, but Anton presided over the welcoming ceremony. This was also a manifestation of equal status.

This was also a rare moment for Marie Therese to participate in social activities with her relatives. Of course, for Saxony, which was not a neighboring country and was not very prominent, the French were unlikely to interfere here.

When the hunting started, there were still some wild animals in the forest, such as grizzly bears, which were quite active.

This is true from Bavaria to Thuringia and Saxony.

Therefore, even if there are followers following, it may not be that safe.

However, the hunters who participated in the hunting were still willing to go at this time, and their families were also with them.

"There are often wild beasts here, I think we should gather together to be safer."

It has been a long time since there was an unlucky nobleman who was killed in a fight with wild beasts in Europe. Even foresters and forest workers always carry guns. The main threats are the pastures in the countryside. Those horses, cattle and sheep are vulnerable, especially when they are all concentrated in the fence.

There are still some mountains and valleys between Leipzig and Dresden. Naturally, there will be some wild beasts left nearby, and it is impossible for people to occupy all places, so it is not surprising that anything happens.

"I hope to hunt deer. I am good at roasting venison, but I don’t know if there are suitable spices for cooking here."

Soloviev rode in the front on horseback. He had also won prey in the hunting he participated in before, and killed a bear in Finland. As for whether he likes to hunt deer and roe deer, these animals are at a long distance, and he feels more like a sniper when he goes to snipe.

Moreover, he really didn't like hunting bears. Perhaps he recently remembered the story of Misha, the retired bear from the circus, and Masha, the little girl.

"Baron, how is it?"

When Karl spoke, he didn't make much noise.

"It's so quiet. If it was a bear, we would have hidden ourselves. Although this creature looks strong and fierce, it's not necessarily brave."

"It's really Russian. They are very familiar with bears."

"But this hunting rifle is not very handy. Fortunately, it uses deer hunting bullets."

While they were talking, a male deer really passed by in front. Grand Duke Karl saw that in a flash, the Russian major next to him raised his double-barreled hunting rifle and fired continuously, and the deer fell to the ground.

In the nearby woods, the birds were startled.

"What a fast gun!"

The nobles present couldn't help but admire. Grand Duke Karl and his adjutant raised their guns, but they didn't expect the Russian major next to him to shoot so quickly.

After the deer was shot, it did not turn around. Two shots broke its spine and hit its heart, both of which were vital parts.

"You are a natural hunter. You will be the chief hunter of the Russian court in the future."

After seeing this, Anton, the brother-in-law of Archduke Karl, also praised it. Such a fast shooter can be used anywhere.

"I am more suitable as a soldier. Besides, when hunting, if the bullets used are not good, it is easy to cause accidental injuries."

"Yes, there are many accidents when hunting."

When Anton said this, he did not expect that the "profiteer bloodline" of this Russian major would break out again, and he began to recommend hunting rifles to him and Archduke Karl.

"If you want to ensure safety, you can use a rifled hunting rifle produced in Petersburg. It uses paper shell bullets, has high accuracy and great lethality, and has a safety device on the gun to prevent accidental discharge."

"Inventor, you are here to promote your design again. But this is a military rifle. I have only seen one given to my brother in Vienna."

Franz also asked Archduke Karl to use this gun to hunt wild goats at the time, and he was naturally very impressed.

"Your Highness, although this is a military secret, the production method is very special. They are all hand-rubbed rifles and special bullets, which are different from the military version."

What's more, the output of the two arsenals in Tula and the rebuilt Izhevsk has not been able to supply. This rifle is only equipped to the Guards Chasseur Regiment and the first battalion of the three major Guards Regiments, and a company of the Pavlovsk Grenadiers Regiment. The number is extremely limited.

Because of this, Solovyov's good friend, Peter Petrovich, the father of the three Dolgorukov brothers, recently resigned from the Tula Arsenal and returned to his estate.

"This is also easy to leak secrets. I know that the British like to do this. They even register a patent to bully others."

"It's different. These structures have existed for a long time. Breech-loading and rifled guns are technologies that have existed for a long time. Only paper shell bullets and copper primers are relatively new things, and the British may be more familiar with the things inside than we Russians."

However, the preparation of mercury fulminate is also very dangerous. Solovyov has heard that several accidents have occurred in special factories in Tula and Lugansk, causing considerable casualties.

The rifle he designed when he first arrived has also been improved with bullets, but it is still very dangerous.

"Yes, sharpshooter, but there is venison to eat today."

"I can show you how Russians eat venison. Believe in my craftsmanship."

There were actually quite a few hunts on this day. Prince Anton shot two rabbits, and Archduke Karl shot a few wild ducks.

Of course, there were also hounds to bring them back.

Soloviev is an excellent deer hunter. After bringing the prey back, he skillfully began to skin and cut the meat.

After the venison legs were cut, they were grilled on the grill, but Solovyov preferred to use skewers to string sweet peppers and large pieces of venison.

"This is more exciting! Your Highness, don't you want to try it?"

"My stomach is not very good, you did a good job, and you also grilled vegetables."

Solovyov was very skilled in this skill, and he had seen many officers of the Guards who liked to use their sabers to skewer large pieces of grilled meat to eat.

However, what he didn't expect was that the well-behaved Princess Ekaterina Dolgorukova changed into a servant's clothes, and the 11-year-old girl came to help him.

Maybe it's like this, there are not many Russian girls who are good and faithful. Louisa is a daughter-in-law sent from Baden, and this girl is a pure Russian product.

"Brother Mishka, I'll help you to string all the fresh venison on the iron skewers."

"Don't prick your hand, Katya, and be careful when cutting meat with a knife, these knives are very sharp."

When this girl helped him string the meat on the iron skewers, he could see Sonya drooling beside him.

She has reached the age of "eating meat", but Prince Vasily still feeds his daughter rabbit meat, at least her little milk teeth can handle it, and the venison is harder.

"If you add ingredients, it should be like this, Katya, such a big bunch, who are you going to give it to?"

"Of course for Dad, he fired a blank today and didn't shoot a single duck."

"If it's hunting foxes or wolves, I might be better at it."

"But Vasily Vasilyevich, I didn't see any wolves or foxes today, and it's not easy to deal with them if I catch them."

Prince Anton's reception was also very warm. Habsburg's relatives are all over Europe, and it seems that they can be seen everywhere except Britain and Russia.

Like Saxony, it is still a medium-sized country with a certain amount of power, and it has always been the target of Vienna's wooing. It is not surprising that they want to marry.

The Habsburgs have always been good at this kind of means, and now they are prosperous, but it is a bit difficult for them to marry wives now. Many of Franz's brothers are single, especially Karl, a high-quality young man with a good reputation and a large amount of wealth.

However, his meeting with his French cousin went very smoothly. He even chatted and laughed with Marie Therese while roasting the venison leg. Although he always talked about the victorious battles against the French, Marie Therese liked to hear about it, so it was not a big deal.

It was a daily occurrence for the little girl to pester her big brother. Prince Vasily's daughter, Ekaterina, had always been helping Soloviev.

Katya was still a child. She just thought it was fun to help roast the skewers, and she could also eat the meat just off the grill, which was still very fresh.