The Jews of Russia are a good illustration of what it means to "be unlucky, and drink cold water and stuff your teeth".

In fact, the Jewish community in Russia was very different from their relatives on the European continent, and they were mainly farmers for their livelihood, not bankers and merchants as one might normally think.

Jews drink less alcohol among Russians, which is not to say that Jews do not drink alcohol, but that they are less than other Russians.

When faced with the scourge of cholera, the situation was similar in Russia and Britain and France, and the dead bodies could be found everywhere in St. Petersburg and Moscow.

The problem of refugees and vagrants, which had plagued the tsar for many years, was greatly alleviated in just a few weeks.

Instead, there are large numbers of unclaimed bodies and skyrocketing fuel costs due to the need to cremate bodies.

St. Petersburg Imperial Palace.

Nicholas I anxiously paced, he was waiting for the report of the new governor of the Caucasus, Count Josiah Barya-Jones.

In the opinion of Tsar Nicholas I, the plague that struck the poor was not worth mentioning, and victory in the war was the key to turning the tide.

In the deep cloisters, the crisp footsteps of leather shoes falling to the ground could be heard, and a young officer, dressed in a neat uniform, strode towards the council chamber where the Tsar was.

The young officer's face was cold, his eyes were firm, and he had a unique Jin Ge killing aura on his body.

If this person appeared at any celebrity ball or salon in Europe, he would surely become the center of attention, and that temperament would be revered by both men and women.

However, the angular pinna is clearly missing, the chin has a shallow scar, and the badly worn leather boots all speak of the cruelty of war.

The door was slowly pushed open, and the Tsar finally stopped, staring at the young man who walked in.

The kind of coercion that has been accumulated over the years by the superior is overwhelming, coupled with that terrifying height, even a soldier who is as cold as steel can't help but tremble.

But the young officer, after all, had seen the big scene, and quickly regained his composure.

He took a deep breath, cleared his throat, and began to report to the Tsar on the outcome and course of the war, as well as what he had seen and felt.

At first the Tsar listened quietly, but soon his brows furrowed.

Until he heard the phrase "Count Josiah Barya-Jones has repelled the attack of the Chechens, and the South Russian steppe is safe." We can take this opportunity to build a defensive line in case the enemy attacks again.."

"Damn cowards! I gave him 200,000 troops, ten times as much as Imam Shamir! As a result, he was complacent just after repelling the enemy! I want victory! It's all killed! ”

Tsar Nicholas I roared hysterically that Count Josiah Barria Jones was progressing far less than the former had expected.

However, as a first-hand witness of the war in the Caucasus, the young Consquet Lobezov knew how hard-won this victory was.

Although the Imam Khanate did not have a large army, the Caucasus region was very vast and the terrain was complex. Although the strength of the Russian army is ten times that of the other side, it is not familiar with the terrain, coupled with the hostility of the locals, on the contrary, it is often at a disadvantage on the local battlefield.

At the same time, the army of the Imam Khanate was not afraid of death, and Imam Shamir himself was a brilliant strategist, and it was not easy for Count Josiah Barya-Jones to repel it.

"Marshal Barria Jones and we have done our best"

Before Consquet Lobezov could finish his sentence, he was rudely interrupted by Nicholas I.

"Enough! I don't want to listen to the loser's excuse and tell Josiah Barria Jones that he can go home and pick up the kids. Ivan Fedorovich Paskevich will take his place. ”

Ivan Fedorovich Paskevich, a close friend of Tsar Nicholas I, one of Russia's most decorated generals, once participated in the Napoleonic Wars, extinguished the Decembrist rebellion, and suppressed the Polish uprising.

The young officer was angry and unwilling, but he did not dare to disobey the tsar.

Nicholas I noticed the expression of the young man, who was in a very bad mood, in his plan was supposed to completely wipe out the Imam Khanate by 1846.

"Go down and get some rest." The Tsar's tone was cold, and the young Consquet clenched his fists, straightened, saluted, and turned to leave.

Prime Minister Illarion Vasilyevich Vasilichkov was the head of the civil service in Russia, but because the civilian officials themselves were not treated well by Nicholas I, his status was not high.

But as Prime Minister, Illarione has something to say.

"Your Majesty the Tsar, you have changed three commanders in a row, so I am afraid that it will be of great concern for the morale of the army."

"You know what? Have you ever been on the battlefield? Or did you go to military school? ”

Prime Minister Ilarion was momentarily speechless, and Nicholas I's contempt continued.

"You guy who doesn't know anything, what qualifications do you have to judge here? Fighting a war is a soldier's business, and civilian officials should do their job well! ”

Field Marshal Prince Mainekov: "Your Majesty, the war has been going on for too long. We need to end this costly war as soon as possible, and I propose another 100,000 troops. ”

Nicholas I nodded approvingly, and then looked at Prime Minister Illarion on the side, but the latter apparently did not recognize his mistake and said out of place.

"Your Majesty, we have no money! Send another 100,000 troops, and the supply will crush our country! ”

"If you don't have any money, borrow it! You damn thing, don't you have any brains? ”

Nicholas I was obviously even more angry, he already looked down on these fools, and Prime Minister Illarion's submissive appearance made him even more displeased.

"Your Majesty, we now have no place to continue borrowing money." Prime Minister Illarione said aggrieved.

"Idiot! How to borrow money, do you want me to teach you? How simple it is to sign a contract to borrow money and then expand production. ”

In fact, it was taught to Nicholas I by Franz, and although it was very primitive, it was very effective. However, it is only valid for a country like Russia, which has a vast land and abundant manpower.

This method did work well before, and the three large arsenals in Russia were built in this way. The three factories, the Yvzhesk Arsenal, the Shetloletsk Arsenal and the Tula Arsenal, are all in the heart of Russia.

I won't go into too much detail here, but the annual output is 100,000 rifles and 15,000 long swords, as well as a million rounds of ammunition and a hundred cannons.

But with the rift in Russian-Austrian relations, Franz will not be relenting. If the Russian government comes to borrow money again, it will not be able to directly use futures as collateral, and even if futures are used as collateral, the price will be pushed down to a very low level.

Of course, this is not said on the surface, but there is a skepticism about the future of the Russian economy, after all, the Imam Khanate at this time was operating in the Caucasus and near the Black Sea.

At the same time, the merchant ships of the Austrian Empire had already been "robbed" once, and the Russian side had not yet made compensation.

Originally, the trade between Russia and Austria was its greatest source of foreign money, but as a result the former created a rift in the relationship between the two, the latter began to pick and choose the goods traded.

Prime Minister Illarione also tried to find a pick-up man, but Russia's plate was too big for anyone to catch, and the credibility was too bad for anyone to dare to take it.

"The Austrians said that they had no money and that they had to pay with one hand and deliver the goods with the other."

Prime Minister Illarion said somewhat helplessly that if the tsar had not suddenly visited Britain, they would still be able to make money lying down now.

Nicholas I was not an idiot, he knew that what had happened recently was revenge on the part of Austria, but it was his dream to divide the world with England.

At the same time, in order to fulfill the glory and dreams of the Romanov dynasty, he could only sacrifice the Austrian Empire as an ally.

"And what about Britain and France?"

"When the British and French private banks saw that the Austrians had withdrawn their funds, they were even less confident, and they all did the same, and the conditions were harsher than those of the Austrians."

Although Russia had been blocking news of the rebellion in the country, the great powers had their own eyes in St. Petersburg, and Franz was able to spread the news through the newspapers of various countries.

Therefore, the situation in Russia at this time made the private merchants of various countries have no confidence at all, and at the same time do not have the courage to do business with it.

"What about the National Bank?" Nicholas I continued to ask without giving up, in fact he was also very tired of the merchants, in his eyes those people had neither moral boundaries nor courage.

"The British declared that they would only consider negotiating business with us if we abrogated the Treaty of Winkar-Iskelesi with the Ottoman Empire"

Nicholas I was so angry that he almost smashed the table on the spot, but there was no table around him for him to smash.

"Damn the British! I'm obviously honest with each other, but they still want to empty the gloves of the white wolf! ”

Such an obvious error in diplomatic rhetoric could not have come from the scheming British Foreign Office, which in fact reads:

"As long as Russia abrogates the Treaty of Winkar-Iskelesi with the Ottoman Empire, we will lend money to them."

Although it was also a trap, Franz did not know whether Nicholas I and the vast number of pro-British factions in Russia would be fooled, after all, they believed the nonsense of the British in history, and almost played themselves to death.

So Franz didn't want to take this risk, so he bribed some Russian officials, and will, will, will; I changed it to only, only.

If the Russians jumped into such an obvious pitfall, then Franz could only change his strategy, change allies, or let Russia change masters.

In France, whether it was Louis Philippe or Napoleon III in prison, they all had a clear purpose and were easier to communicate.

Because they all have different interest groups behind them, the will of the individual will be greatly weakened. Although it also has a strong personal style, it can be talked about anyway.

Russia, on the other hand, was completely different, and the Tsar's personal will was able to influence the country's policy, and such an ally was very insecure.

As for changing the tsar, Franz did not think about it, because at this time the crown prince Alexander II was still an outright liberal.

Although Alexander II is historically known as the "last great tsar", it was the result of a long period of continuous groping and growth, coupled with the strong stimulation of Nicholas I's defeat and suicide.

If it is forced to enter the stage of history, there is too much uncertainty, and if liberal reforms are carried out recklessly, the whole of Russia may fall apart.

To abolish the Treaty of Winkar-Iskelesi with the Ottoman Empire would be to bury the efforts of several generations of tsars, as Nicholas I was well aware of after repeated reminders from Franz.

Since the British can't, what about the French?

Nicholas I went on to ask: "What about the conditions in France?" ”

Prime Minister Illarione actually took money from the French, he cleared his throat and said.

"The French are willing to lend us money, but they need us to use Alaska as collateral."

Nicholas I and Prince Mainekov looked at each other, in fact, although the area of Alaska is very large, it is completely chicken ribs for Russia at this time.

Although the Russians began colonizing Alaska in 1784, the results were impressive, and until 1846 the colony was dominated by the fur trade and fishing, with fewer than 7,000 people living on more than 1.7 million square kilometers of land.

(The number of natives who defected to Russia is also counted, and it is not clear what the proportion of natives to Russians is.) ）

In fact, even today, Alaska is the least populous state in the United States, with a population of only 740,000.

Although Nicholas I was very fond of land, he really did not have much interest in this vast and useless land.

Moreover, the defeat in Oregon proved that it was difficult for Russia to continue to do anything on the North American continent, so His Majesty the Tsar thought that it would be good to sell this rotten land for a dozen or two billion rubles.

(At this time, the ruble was almost twice as expensive as the franc.) ）

Prince Mainekov also thought it was good, after all, Alaska was too far away and had to send troops to defend it, and the problem of people was easy to solve, but the supply was very difficult, and Russia did not have any good ports, so the cost of maintaining the rule was really high.

As for the resources of Alaska, they are not worth mentioning in Russia, whether it is wild beasts, woods, or fish, Russia has them.

(At the time, no gold or oil had been discovered in Alaska, and it was also known as the Tsar's "freezer.") ）

The Tsar saw that Prince Mainekov had the same thoughts as himself, so he asked.

"How much are the French ready to bid?"

Prime Minister Illarione cautiously held out a finger.

"100 million rubles?! No, that's too little! Keep in mind that Alaska is three sizes of France! ”

Prime Minister Illarione swallowed a mouthful of saliva and shook his head.

"What do you want to say?" Nicholas I asked.

"It's ten million francs."

Prime Minister Illarione replied tremblingly.

"What! Ten million? Or a franc! ”

Originally, it was a common practice in the mall to ask for a price to pay back on the spot. However, no one dared to negotiate business with the tsar, and Nicholas I only felt that he had been insulted.

Then a slap-sized slap slapped Prime Minister Illarione in the face, and the poor old prime minister was directly knocked out.

Nicholas I, who is 206cm tall, was not a strong blow, and Illarion was almost killed by this blow.

In fact, the French bid was 50 million francs, with a maximum of 100 million. It's just that the man sent by Guizo lowered the offer by half in order to save costs, and told Illarion.

"Our budget is fifty million francs, and as for how much we can suppress, we will be half a half, and I will personally sponsor you with five hundred thousand francs."

If 10 million francs were negotiated, then Prime Minister Illarion would earn 20 million francs, a figure he would never have dared to think of in his life.

(End of chapter)