Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

Chapter 115 Don’t take the side roads when patrolling Peterhof Palace!

After the spontaneous mourning ceremony in St. Petersburg, people still had to return to their daily lives, but the shadow of conspiracy gradually replaced this peaceful and quiet life.

Tsar Paul is looking forward to the completion of the new fortress and palace built in his birthplace, but the interior decoration and some arrangements are still in progress and will not be completed until the end of the year at the earliest.

This may have something to do with the alarm in the Winter Palace. Paul himself believed that the new palace was safe under the protection of the Guards.

But in the summer, as the weather warmed and then became hot, the court came to Peterhof again.

This is a lively palace. Fountains have replaced running water, and the redecoration plan is actually closer to the ideas of Peter the Great.

"After all, this place is still called Peterhof!"

"It sounds like German. Isn't that Peter's courtyard?"

After all, Solovyov was still very sensitive to the language of "grooms". He and von Bystrom, who had recovered from his injury and returned to the legion, came to Peterhof Palace to work in order to protect the safety of the royal family.

The officers of the Guards were also able to see the Crown Prince going in and out of the Naryshkins' summer villa, and it was obvious what he was doing.

After all, that lady is in good health and has a cheerful personality, and is very much liked by His Highness.

As for after moving into the palace, everyone followed the routine, doing what they normally do and what they need to do now.

It’s just that it’s so hot in the summer in St. Petersburg. This kind of weather is very unscientific.

"Major, you have been in St. Petersburg for several years. I have been in the Guards since I joined the army. You said this horrible weather. We are near the sea, so it shouldn't be like this. It's really hot. It's because you are so thoughtful that you let us all change into caps. Otherwise, the brothers would have fainted from the heat like those idiots in the grenadiers!"

Solovyov himself did not wear a hat and was dressed lightly because of the hot weather. Because of this, he was reprimanded for the first time since the Tsar found out.

However, the affairs of the soldiers were not taken into account. After all, the emperor liked to punish officials. If Solovyov was fined one month's salary, he would not lack the money.

"Agapeev, you are a soldier, you should be an officer, you speak in a set way, but it's a pity that you are a civilian, and you can't become a second lieutenant unless you have made special contributions."

"That can't be helped. It's just how we are! But Major, you are different from other masters, and our emperor is different from the previous emperors."

"Oh? Where do I start?"

"Our emperor's food is about the same as that of you officials, even worse than some officials. For example, our regiment commander is a lieutenant general. I once followed him on duty and saw the pomp and circumstance of his meals. Our emperor's meals are only slightly better than the meals of the Grand Marshal you mentioned."

"You are so talkative! Don't you think about how old the Grand Marshal is? When he was in the capital, he was already over 60 years old. If your father lived to that age, he would also have a bad appetite."

“You are right.”

There is a big fountain below the place where they are on duty. At least the fountain can bring some water vapor, making them feel cooler.

When Solovyov left the post, he heard the private of the Guards complaining constantly.

After changing shifts with the 2nd Battalion in the afternoon, the officers will not have any rest time, which means that the soldiers can still return to the barracks. Even the barracks for new recruits with the doors and windows of the palace open is cooler than Peterhof Palace in summer.

The palace is now quite quiet. The Queen is itching to make some reliefs for her granddaughters. On their respective naming days, she will give them a few small things as birthday presents.

Paul was reviewing documents and convening a meeting of ministers. The hot weather was a torture for some older ministers, especially since they had to dress formally.

Apart from the fact that Alexander ran to the Naryshkins' villa, Constantine has been training intensively during this period. His Guards Regiment had lost a lot of troops and had been replenished with a lot of new recruits, so it was not wrong to train hard.

The other two princes, Nikolai and Mikhail, are still young, not even old enough to have a tutor to go to school. Today, they were taken to the aquarium by their nanny.

Instead, the female members of the family gathered in a good place in the palace to enjoy the cool air, and drove away all the male servants, leaving only the maids around.

Because the weather was too hot, they generally wore simple and loose clothes, which were somewhat Greek in style.

After Elena was forbidden to paint with potentially toxic pigments, she began to sketch with pencils. She probably consumed the most pencils in the palace.

Her skills have improved a bit, but because she is pregnant, it is not convenient for her to move. However, Julie, who comes to assist her, is in the same situation, both leaning on the chaise longue.

The feeling given by today's occasion may be more retro, as if returning to the late Roman Republic, and the clothes are also very light.

"But my sister-in-law doesn't want to expose one of her breasts. It doesn't count as Greek work clothes. We're all girls here, so there's nothing to be embarrassed about."

Indeed, there were only maids and servants hired by the palace here now, but the Crown Princess still felt very embarrassed. Besides the fact that she was not used to exposing her breasts, her breasts still looked a little small unless she used lining when she was wearing clothes.

No wonder Alexander has recently fallen in love with Maria Naryshkina. Compared to her, Louisa is still too frail. Even after giving birth to a child, although her prominent features have grown a bit, there is still a lot of room for improvement.

She has fair skin and her clothes are very suitable for her. She dresses like a Greek woman and wears Greek slippers. The most attractive thing about her may be her pitiful look. However, Alexander might get tired of it after a long time, as not everyone likes such a fresh type.

"Her Royal Highness the Crown Princess will definitely not like it. You will be the same if it's you."

The court doctors drew up a long list that included which perfume formulas were not to be used, which made them very careful.

Julie's delivery time will definitely be earlier than the two princes. She has been particularly fantasizing recently, thinking about how her mother always held her when she was a child. How should she treat this child?
"Julie, your Russian has improved."

"We are going to settle here, and my mother wants to go back to Paris, to her uncle."

The French National Assembly did cancel the wanted orders for 14 immigrants in exile abroad and allowed them to return to France. Julie knew that this was the result of her father's operation, but this was the first time in her life that she had to be separated from her mother.

"You should also go back to Paris. You French people all say, Paris is the centre of the world!" (Paris is the centre of the world)

(But the environment in Paris is so much worse than here. The apartment we live in is much better than the one in Paris. It would be fine if my mother lived in a villa in the countryside. Paris and London are not that good in the city. Ouch!) When her mother is not around, Julie is very talkative. This is a characteristic of the French. Once they start talking, they can't stop. But when she was holding her stomach, some people still made jokes.

“Julie, tais-toi, le bébé proteste!” (Julie, shut up, the baby is protesting!) That’s what Elena said.

What can be confirmed is that both Madame Le Brun and Julie are old Parisians. Although the baby in her belly will be born in a foreign country, the Parisian characteristics will be brought out from the womb.

"I hope it's a girl so I can have my own little model." (I hope it's a girl so I can have my own little model.)
“I hope it’s a girl too.”

Alexandra said so, and the ladies nodded in agreement, but the lively Elena didn't care.

That's true. There is no artificial ultrasound detection now, so it's impossible to know that she is pregnant with a boy.

However, when they went to the aquarium a few days ago, the dolphins all rushed over and wanted to rub against them, just like when Louisa was swimming before.

"You still need to move around more when the time comes, but sister-in-law"

Several girls were staring at Louisa, which made her feel a little uncomfortable.

She had no way to calm herself down yet. After Alexandra and Elena got married, they began to talk more about their husbands. Today they were here to enjoy the cool air, and they agreed to inherit the appearance of the ancient ladies, so they decided to focus the conversation on painting, which made her feel a little more relaxed.

As for the fact that Alexander had a mistress, she knew it was inevitable when she received court education. She herself was only fourteen or fifteen years old when Count Platonzubov courted her. In the small court of Baden, such a thing would never happen in public.

And now, the pressure she faces makes her cry all the time, and her spirit and mood are not very good.

After the show, she wanted to relax by herself, so she sent her maid away and walked in the English Park of the Summer Palace.

This park was built in the late period of the Queen's era and completed in 1796. It was the Queen's retreat. She had originally planned to rest here often in her later years, but it was only used in 1796 and has been out of use since then. Even on weekdays, few people enter and leave the palace here, but people often take a walk here.

Louisa was attracted by the tranquility and comfort here, so she leaned against a tree with a book of poetry tucked under her arm.

"How nice! We won't be disturbed here."

The wind started to blow again in the afternoon, and she felt very comfortable. After all, no one would normally pass by such a remote path, which led to the seldom-visited birch house. After the Queen's death, Paul's construction of the English Park only retained the wooden house and the completed palace, and the construction of a series of pools and pavilions in the building was stopped.

But that doesn't mean no one has passed by this place. Solovyov happened to be in the English Park.

The reason was that he reported to the head of the delegation that although the England Park had ceased to be used, it was densely wooded and the internal environment was relatively complex, posing a potential safety hazard.

He walked through the entire park that afternoon and checked every possible hiding place.

"There are probably a few places where assassins can hide, but few people come here, so it will be fine."

As he walked, he also mumbled something that he couldn't speak in front of others. He felt that his accent had changed. The center of Mandarin was originally near Chengde, and in Russia, it is easy to change into a Northeastern accent.

Louisa only saw a figure passing behind the big tree, and she tried to leave in a hurry, but her feet slipped and she fell down.

Solovyov didn't see clearly that there was someone behind the big tree. He didn't care about that at the moment and jumped over in one leap.

It must be said that during this expedition to Italy and Switzerland, his personal abilities have been greatly improved, and he has saved lives on the battlefield more than once.

It's just that his hand was supporting her, and Louisa fell face down, so if people didn't see clearly, it was easy for an accident to happen.

When he saw it clearly, it was already too late, but he couldn't hurt Her Highness, so when he caught it, his palm just happened to rest on the breast.

At this moment, Louisa, who was usually gentle and timid, blushed to her ears, and then instinctively slapped this reckless guy who came out of nowhere with the back of her hand.

Actually, this wasn't really a slap, it was more like a protest.

"Your Highness, I'm sorry, I didn't notice it was you, and I came here to conduct a security check."

"Major, I didn't expect it to be you. Fortunately, you, Elena and Countess Katish are 'good sisters'. If it was someone else."

She bit her lip again and looked like she was bullied, which was really cute.

".I will definitely call the guards!"

Of course, she also seemed to think that Solovyov was a "good sister" to the sisters-in-law and the "little goblin", which made the Guards Major feel that his life was indeed very embarrassing.

"Your Highness, I'm glad you're okay. We, the officers of the Imperial Guard, are responsible for protecting the safety of the Imperial Palace. When there is a war, we will also go to the battlefield under the leadership of the Emperor."

"I know you are a good officer. After Constantine came back, he often mentioned his favorite warriors at the dinner table, and you were one of the most frequently mentioned ones."

"But you also think that I am the kind of person who is rumored to be like this. But my sexual orientation is normal, just like other officers of the Guards. My next goal is to get married."

"Haha, it seems that your handsome face has caused people to misunderstand you! If you change into girls' clothes now... By the way, how old are you?"

"Twenty-three, Your Highness."

Louisa covered her mouth with a book and laughed. She managed to maintain her composure. After all, her manners would satisfy the empress. In the future, she would become the mistress of the Russian court - although she was a pitiful beauty with the least sense of existence.

"Even if you change your clothes and put on some makeup, you still look like a girl. If His Highness puts on makeup, he won't be as handsome as you, but he will be more heroic than you!"

At this point, she mentioned Alexander, and thinking of her husband running away to the Naryshkins' house, her tear glands became uncontrollable and she began to cry.

(End of this chapter)