Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796

Chapter 407 049 Ultimatum, also known as the Book of Sadness

Napoleon was in Paris, walking his horse, but time was of the essence.

This person's energy is so frightening that he only rests for 4 hours a day, including the time between eyelids and light sleep.

As for being energetic and controlling, he obviously likes to do many things, including finding mistresses.

But at this time today, it was Caulaincourt he was listening to.

"Caulaincourt, is that all?"

"Yes, Your Majesty. The King of Prussia has issued an ultimatum, which, in the diplomatic language used by the Russians these days, should be 'so-called'."

"The 'so-called' means that we don't admit it, but just listen to their opinions, right, Caulaincourt. Although you are sometimes 'stupid', you still have some talent in understanding these contents. That His Majesty the King What’s your opinion? Do you want us to withdraw from the German region, dissolve the Rhine Confederation, or anything else?”

"Your Majesty, apart from these clichés, let me read it to you."

"Read it, Caulaincourt, I won't be angry."

"The King's Expectations of His Majesty the Emperor, the French Army"

When Caulaincourt finished, Napoleon shook his head.

"It's really nothing new. Our friends obviously overlooked one point. After the Treaty of Basel in 1795, Prussia stopped caring about Vienna's affairs. This was a kind of 'watching from the sidelines'. They had enough to eat and wanted to do it themselves." Not only has he obtained the benefits, but he is still greedy and wants to gain access to Hanover and other places, and he still wants to dictate to us. Since he wants war, this coward must have a taste of the power of our army. "

"Your Majesty, how should we reply?" Even Caulaincourt had already made a move to record it at this time. A nobleman with a title would record it. Obviously Napoleon would not let him do this.

"Caulaincourt doesn't need you to do this. You just need to find the secretary. You don't even need my full-time secretary."

After the clerk arrived, Napoleon began to dictate: "This paragraph must be added to what I want to dictate. Believe me, I have such a powerful force that no one can shake my victory! But Why, for what purpose was so much blood shed? I corresponded with His Majesty, as I did with Emperor Alexander before Austerlitz. The words are the same. You can consider the words below and go to the archives to repeat them, but Your Majesty, you will definitely fail! You talk about giving up the peaceful life of you and your subjects, but you can't provide the slightest reason for your remarks today! , who are still innocent can negotiate with me in a manner commensurate with your level, but within a month, your status will be different."

"Your Majesty, are you here yet?"

"That's it. Thank you, sir. It's just that you need to think about what words are needed in it."

"Your Majesty, is 'innocent' also used here?"

"If you feel it is inappropriate, you can use some harsh words, but the main idea must be clearly expressed. I will read it after it is written."

After Napoleon said this, he continued to ride, handed over the main business to the clerk, and continued to chat with Caulaincourt.

"Caulaincourt, do you want to choose a good horse too?"

"Your Majesty, I don't think so. This may remind me of Queen Louise."

"Why her? What shocking remarks did this lady make?"

"Your Majesty, I think she should not be a lady, but a Valkyrie. She will lead a cavalry through the Brandenburg Gate and even into the streets of Paris."

"What are you doing here? When you come to Paris, you don't even need to find a city gate. Does she have to pass by the construction site?"

"If this is the case, a 'safety helmet' should be added, which is a helmet worn on the construction worker's head to prevent falling objects from heights."

"Then Pyrrhus will definitely need one, but this lady should not have a stone to throw at her. Instead, she will be the one who gets stoned."

"Your Majesty, you are actually joking right now."

"Your friend, Caulaincourt, I don't think he realizes how much trouble he has caused. And I already knew that Prussia started mobilizing last month, and the troops that were mobilized were close to Two hundred thousand people, including their army and the trapped Saxon army."

"Your Majesty, what are your plans?"

"You will know when you get to the battlefield."

At the same time, Berlin was also sending messages to Petersburg.

Langeron and Solovyov were in the army garrison in Jelgava, but they knew the news earlier than Petersburg.

"This kind of ultimatum will not cause any wavering in Bonaparte, but will strengthen his determination."

"Michelle, what do you think will happen?"

"Didn't we make a plan in Petersburg? The difference is the speed of Prussia's failure to mobilize the army."

"But Marshal Kamensky came to us to command the army. I just want to say that Mikhail Fedorovich himself definitely does not want to command the battle. But with him here, he can help us solve many problems. "

"You are a disciple of the Generalissimo. Are you sure it's okay to be with him?"

"I am still his son's comrade-in-arms. When we attacked the Guimen Bridge, we rushed over together."

Langeron looked at Solovyov. This guy is really a "social butterfly". He is very popular with all factions in the Russian army. He has worked with many people, and the same should be true for women.

When I write my memoirs in the future, I must remember him, but I will only say that there is evidence.

After thinking about it, he thought for a while before continuing to tell Solovyov: "That's good, at least he won't cause you trouble."

"I hope he doesn't remember that I offended him when I was fifteen years old. I was still a second lieutenant at that time."

"What's wrong with you? Michel, aren't you always smart?"

"I was still a child at that time. Speaking directly in front of him, the most outstanding commander in Russia is Alexander Vasilyevich."

"It's a small matter, Michel. If it was a generalissimo, he might still be very clear-headed at this age. And the commander-in-chief who came now is in good health, but his command ability may not be there."

"Ah , which makes sense. Count, you don't mind us starting the deduction on the map now, right? "

"But we only brought our adjutants, and no one came to help us place your 'chess pieces'."

"It still needs to be kept secret. So, you can choose your side."

"Although I don't like it, Michel, I will play the Prussian group of 'clockwork men' today, and you will play the French army."

"Why?"

"If you follow the mechanical way of fighting of the Prussians, you can't play your ability, and I have some confidence in this approach."

Langelon should not know about his relationship now, but Solovyov is also happy to do so.

He has also been trying to imitate the French methods recently. He has been doing this research for many years.

"Then, if I were the emperor of the French people, the Bonaparte from Corsica, I would act from south to north like this. I would put several armies together, and the main force in the middle would still hold the Guards as a reserve, and the First Army and the Third Army would be on the right wing of the entire army."

Soloviev did not slack off. He tried to recall Napoleon's deployment and imitated his behavior, how to do it when maneuvering on the battlefield.

And Langeron also knew that Solovyov was more concerned about battlefield maneuvers. He was also scalp-tingling about this formation, but he was not Hohenlohe. At this time, he had to be more cautious and defeated the troops behind the favorable mountains and river terrain.

Looking at Langeron's arrangement, Solovyov had an idea in his mind.

"If I follow your method, I'm afraid I have to take measures on the Elbe River."

"Your method is quite clever. Did you refer to the actions in Italy?"

"We have done this several times when crossing the river in Italy."

Soloviev's deployment is like a revolving door. Even if Langeron is conservative in deployment, it will take about 25 days to compress the Prussian army to the vicinity of Brandenburg.

"If it is near Berlin, the King of Prussia can apply for our reinforcements. I hope he will do so."

Langeron still has some methods. When he was at a disadvantage in terms of military strength, he gave up a large area of ​​territory and moved to the vicinity of Berlin. Even when he kept more than 120,000 troops, he was ready to give up Berlin and go to West Prussia to join the Russian army that was about to enter East Prussia.

"At this time, 20,000 Swedish troops will join in. Although not many, they can also strengthen the strength of the coalition. I hope the Prussians will do this."

Napoleon is very confident. He believes that he will defeat the Prussians within a month and be at the gates of the city.

Langelon and Solovyov's deduction here set this time at about 25 days, but Langeron only lost troops on the right wing of the Prussian army, so he still has 140,000 people. Although the combat effectiveness may decline, there is still a chance to usher in a turnaround by fighting and retreating.

However, the Prussians are confident that they can win with their own strength without the money of the Russians.

The closer the war is to start, the more the Duke of Brunswick misses his uncle and his group of old guys.

Young people nowadays are really arrogant. And he is the only veteran who has participated in the Seven Years' War. This sense of loneliness really makes him very uncomfortable.

In the past, he could talk to his youngest son about his worries. Now that the "Black Duke" is leading troops again, he is even more lonely.

Hohenlohe also participated in the battles at the end of the Seven Years' War. Because he could start as an officer, he obviously did not have a clear understanding of the current Prussian army. He thought he could fight.

They were all immersed in the glory of the Prussian army in the past. In the past, the Prussian army fought against the French in the Holy Roman Empire, but never lost. This argument is not good.

"Damn it, children, let's stop here. There is still some time before the war starts. We still have some time to decide the final deployment before the deployment of the entire army. Don't make a hasty decision because of attack or defense. At least, His Majesty the King will come here tomorrow, and we can express our opinions in front of him."

After everyone dispersed, he also had to drag his old body back to rest.

However, the Duke of Brunswick has always been in good physical condition, healthy, and looks like he can live to 90 years old. Even Queen Louise wished him to live longer.

For a veteran of a bygone era, it was too lonely not to die on the battlefield with a bullet and to watch his colleagues older than him leave.

He was also worried about family matters. With his first three sons becoming more and more mentally retarded, he had always wanted to pass on his position to his youngest son, but he was troubled by the inheritance law and did not make a decision immediately.

In the Duchy of Brunswick, he could only continue to rule at this age. In order to ensure the safety of his family, he had already arranged for his youngest daughter-in-law Mary to take refuge in Sweden, and the rest of his family would be taken care of by relatives in Hanover.

Speaking of which, his family, except for the "Black Duke", can be said to be old, young, sick, disabled, pregnant, and passengers with children.

He had too many concerns, and his longevity and good health became his great distress.

"If I die, let me die directly on the battlefield, not in the hospital."

It is not surprising that he has such an idea. The elderly are always very lonely.

As for a letter recently sent from Jelgava, it was handed to him two days ago.

It was the young man who came to visit his territory. He was now a colonel at the age of 25.

What Solovyov mentioned in the letter was the opinion of the Russian army's "East Prussian Corps" headquarters supporting Prussia.

"Marshal Kamensky is still on his way from Oryol to the headquarters, so we can only hold a meeting to discuss and decide. Chief of Staff General Langeron, General Buchholden, commander of the Second Army, General Osterman-Tolstoy, acting commander of the First Army, and I, as the director of the Operations Department, have communicated and discussed in person, and we do not think that the Prussian army now has the ability to take the initiative to launch an attack and win alone in the battle."

After reading this part, the Duke of Brunswick closed his eyes in the recliner and began to think about countermeasures.

"I am old, not like when I was young." He couldn't help but think of his uncle's army when he was young, and the current situation.

If his uncle was still alive, he should choose to take the initiative to attack, but none of the generals in the army had his ability. Some of the cavalrymen might be as brave as Seydlitz and Saito, but none of them could fight as commanders.

The army needed a change of blood. His youngest son was a fierce general, but he was not fit for a commander. Several young princes still needed to grow up. As for those younger than him, even these old men in their fifties and sixties were often incompetent and very arrogant.

At this time, being a helmsman on a rotten ship made people feel that the hero was old.