With the approval of General Gorchakov, the Russian and French armies reached a temporary truce agreement with great speed, and the two armies would use this rare opportunity to lick their wounds and contain those who had unfortunately been captured, and the already fierce battlefield on the Crimean Peninsula suddenly fell into a rare calm. Pen & Fun & Pavilion www.biquge.info

Although the weather was so bad that the officers and men of both armies were overwhelmed, the temporary truce made the weather less bearable, and with the exception of the necessary vigilance troops, the men suspended their combat missions and rested in their camps, enjoying a rare leisure time without facing the danger of life and death.

And with the passage of time, General Gorchakov's report was also passed through the envoys one by one, and finally came to the nerve center of the Russian Empire.

It's still the middle of winter, so it's colder than the Crimean peninsula, and the recent snowfall has been incessant, and the temperature has become extremely low, even locals who are used to the cold weather are still complaining about the recent weather.

It's not just the weather that's been complaining about the weather, but also about the rising prices and the increasingly chaotic law and order situation, and since the autumn, the shortage of supplies has been very serious, and the high prices have tormented the general public.

And the root of all the problems is this war, which has been going on for a long time, because of the war, a large amount of supplies have been requisitioned and transported to the front, and there is a shortage of food and other materials supplied to the capital; It is precisely because of the war that a large number of troops and reservists have also been transferred to the front, and as a result, law and order have deteriorated to varying degrees everywhere, and for Russians, the war has begun to have a bad impact on all aspects of life.

If all goes well on the front, the price that has already been paid can be considered an acceptable price, but the news from the front line now does not comfort the residents.

Since the outbreak of the war, although the Russian army initially gained an advantage on the battlefield against Turkey, and once entered the territory of the Principality of Wallachia, after several fierce battles, because the Turkish army retreated into the fortresses and desperately resisted, the pace of the march of the large army was delayed, and they besieged these fortresses, paying a great price, but the result was little.

If such an outcome can be regarded as unsatisfactory, then what happened next can be said to be a disaster, shortly after the war between Russia and Turkey, the Western European powers suddenly began to intervene by force, first the French and then the British, issued ultimatums to Russia and then declared war, although their excuse was to maintain peace in the Near East, but everyone knew that they were deliberately making excuses, just to suppress the Russians.

Their actions naturally aroused anger in Russia, and for a time the crowd was inflamed, and the people demanded a desperate battle with Britain and France, and everyone was very confident that the Russian army, which had defeated Napoleon, could defeat these vile enemies without any suspense.

But as the war progressed, the blind confidence in people's hearts gradually disappeared, because the Russian army suffered defeat after defeat, first in Wallachia, then in Odessa, and finally the Anglo-French army actually landed directly on the Crimean peninsula.

The invaders then marched all the way and defeated the Russian army several times, all the way to the city of Sevastopol, and besieged the fortress, although several of their attacks on the fortress were forcibly resisted by the defenders of the fortress with great sacrifice, but the defeat of the Russian Empire was certain.

The fact that a huge country was beaten to the doorstep and then pressed and beaten by Western European invaders from afar really made the proud Russians feel very angry and uncomfortable, and the pain caused by this war became even more uncomfortable.

At this time, the news of the front line also slowly spread to the rear, and the huge casualties and suffering suffered by the soldiers were also well known to the people in the rear, which further aggravated the pain in the hearts of people everywhere.

For these inhabitants, who are now suffering from the war themselves, and whose children are now suffering at the front, they cannot but feel pain and complain about it. The initial frenzy with which they supported the war has vanished in the face of the misery of life, and now people are only looking at the war with a numb attitude, and everyone wants it to end sooner.

And in the shadows of every corner of the city, there are people secretly propagating that the reason why the war has come to this point, the reason why Russia has to suffer the present humiliation, is precisely because of the mistakes and incompetence of the tsar and his government, and it is precisely because of the mistakes of diplomacy that Russia is facing the dilemma of being embattled on the European continent; It was precisely because of the incompetence of the government that the equipment and supply conditions of the army were greatly inferior to those of the invaders, and the soldiers on the front line suffered huge losses.

As the war became more and more unfavorable, in this cold winter, such propaganda spread like a fire throughout the city and even the whole country, and the flames of anger began to burn in the hearts of many people.

And this fire in the shadows, of course, has not yet been able to burn into the Winter Palace, and His Majesty Tsar Nicholas I, who is in this luxurious palace, can still command the entire empire in his supreme capacity, although he has already felt the incomparable chill of this winter.

At this time, His Majesty the Tsar was receiving an audience from the two ministers in a small conference room next to his bedroom.

Despite the splendor of the room, and despite the fact that the fireplace was blazing, bringing warmth to every corner of the room, the expressions of the three men were very serious, as if winter snow was falling.

Outside the window, the oval-shaped square in front of the Hermitage was deserted, and the cold wind howled and swept through the empty field, which further aggravated the gloom.

In front of such a gloomy Tsar, neither of the two ministers dared to speak, and the cold silence continued, but everyone knew that silence alone could not solve the crisis that the empire was currently facing.

"Do you have no opinion on the recent proposal of the French?" Perhaps impatient with the silence of the ministers, His Majesty the Tsar finally spoke.

At the moment, although the tsar was wearing a military uniform, he looked very bad, his tall body was a little rickety, and perhaps because he often stayed up late, his physical condition was not as good as before, his body had become much thinner, and the corners of his eyes were full of wrinkles.

This sudden war is tormenting the Russian Empire, as well as the spirit and body of His Majesty the Tsar, and no one knows when this suffering will end and in what way it will be relieved.

"Your Majesty, we should seek peace as soon as possible." After a moment of silence, a middle-aged man dressed in a diplomat's gown spoke, his voice sharp and his words articulate with a sense of gentleness. "I think that since the French have made such a proposal, it is a good opportunity, and we should seize this opportunity to make peace as soon as possible, so that this futile war can end as soon as possible, even if it costs a little."

This middle-aged man's name is Alexander Mikhailovich Gorchakov, he is a cousin of General Gorchakov, the commander of the Russian army in Crimea, as a famous aristocratic family in the empire, the Gorchakov family naturally lives in the court, this Mr. Gorchakov entered the diplomatic circles of the empire, and his career is prosperous, but because he is straightforward and fast-talking, he often angers his superiors, causes unwarranted disasters, and finally his career is delayed for a long time.

Previously, he had worked in the Austrian Embassy, and he was opposed to the Russian Empire getting too close to Austria, believing that this weak Austria could not bring any help to Russia at all, but could only drag Russia down, which angered the Foreign Minister, His Excellency Nesher Rodie.

Perhaps because of his German status, the minister was friendly to Austria and considered the two monarchies to be natural allies of Tsarist Russia, and it was he who urged His Majesty the Tsar to send troops to Hungary in 1848 to suppress the Hungarian rebellion for the Austrian Empire and relieve the unprecedented crisis. In hindsight, this decision was regretted by the Tsar, because the Austrians were not at all grateful for the favor of the Russians at that time, but drew closer to Britain and France.

Gorchakov, who was hostile to his ministers, was sent to a small country as a minister, but after all, he was remembered by His Majesty the Tsar because of his famous and talented background.

The minister did not disappear because he was thrown into disposition, he took a clear stand against the current foreign policy of Russia, and several times reminded the tsar not to snub France, not to alienate from Western European countries, and not to rashly start a war so as not to fall into the truth, but his advice did not work, and the tsar's ministers confidently launched the war, believing that the war would be confined to Russia and Turkey, and that the Western European powers would not fight Russia in order to help the discredited Turks.

However, their wishful thinking ultimately failed, and the Western European powers finally launched a war of intervention against Russia, which was nothing less than a great disaster for Russia.

After the war between England and France and Russia, he was summoned back to Petersburg by His Majesty the Tsar, and was consulted as a diplomatic adviser, which was a great step forward in his career, and it was not to be happy that his country had paid so much to achieve such progress.

Moreover, he was still outspoken in front of His Majesty the Tsar, believing that the most important thing in allegiance to the king was to give his opinion truthfully, and not to bend to please His Majesty.

As usual, his words stung His Majesty the Tsar and made him frown slightly.

"I have no objection to making peace with Britain and France, but are they trustworthy?" At this moment, the Foreign Secretary, Nesherro Die, spoke, and the old minister was weak in his speech, so his words were a little vague, "Don't forget, they are used to telling lies, and if they are only tempted by lies, we should not invest too much energy." ”

"If we refuse to negotiate with them for fear of their deception, then how on earth are we going to end the war?" Ambassador Gorchakov asked His Excellency the Minister rhetorically, "Your Excellency, in the current situation, I do not think that we have much choice but to accompany us to the end, even if we are dealing with a group of crooks. ”

Such an unkind remark made His Excellency Nesser Nisher Rodie a little unhappy, but he did not have a seizure, but just lowered his gaze.

It is true that allowing Russia to be dragged into the war with Britain and France will certainly be the biggest stain on this government, and although it cannot be said that it is all his responsibility, as foreign secretary, he is naturally the best scapegoat.

Ever since His Majesty the Tsar summoned Gorchakov, who had always been at odds with him, back to Petersburg, Minister Nesserrody knew that his political career was coming to an end and that it was time for him to prepare for retirement.

Therefore, he has no time to get angry, and even when he attends the State Council, he only listens listlessly.

However, even so, this old man, who had been loyal to the imperial government for half a century, still wanted to fulfill his last duty in front of His Majesty the Tsar.

"If we beg for peace, then peace will never come, and we must let the French know that we are not afraid to continue." He said in a low voice, "Your Majesty, the French are testing us. ”

The eyes of the two ministers were instantly focused on the silent Tsar's Majesty, waiting for his decision.