Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

Chapter 251 At General Moro’s Residence
Solovyov's plays and performances in Paris were very successful. "Asterix" was more like a magical show for children. After being adapted into a puppet show, it was very eye-catching.

But what he really wanted to do was to establish some relationships with the French in the salon, so that he could at least know the latest political trends in Paris.

Napoleon himself did not like Count Morkov, and of course he did not like the ambassador to London, Count Vorontsov, and his brother Count Alexander Vorontsov. The former was only annoying in diplomatic occasions, while the latter two obviously wanted to promote an alliance between Britain and Russia.

However, he was generally satisfied with the current activities of the Russians in France, and nothing too troublesome was involved.

However, General Moreau's activities and the people gathered around him will still attract a lot of attention.

Moro himself didn't know what kind of trouble he would get into in the next six months or so.

For example, the incident involving his old friend and former superior, General Jean-Charles Pichegru, brought him bad luck twice.

Now this general, after being banished to French Guiana as a member of the Royalist party, escaped from exile and reached America, and finally joined up with the most extreme Royalists in London.

Although Georges Cadoudal died unexpectedly in Nantes, the royalist forces still planned to launch the Revolution in Paris and overthrow the rule of the First Consul, but this task was handed over to Pichegru.

As early as when Jourdan was defeated by the coalition forces, Pichegru had already colluded with the royalists. At that time, Moreau defended him, believing that he would never betray the cause of the Republic.

The fact is that during the war of 1797, it was Moreau himself who seized the correspondence between Pichegru and the Allied generals, which was a unique scandal in Paris.

It was because of this that Moreau was implicated and was recalled from the front line for a time. It was not until General Scherer went to the Italian Corps as commander-in-chief that he served there as deputy. He demonstrated his ability in a series of failures. He was so good at organizing the retreat of the rear guard.

Now, Pichegru is lingering around again and has begun to carry out secret activities in France, but he has not come to Paris directly. He only has his personal representative in Paris who has entered Madame Moreau's salon.

Moreau was not aware of this, and he seldom cared which guests his wife invited to the salon. This wife would bring him a lot of trouble, not just what he could see now.

It was by chance that he attended this salon at his home.

Solovyov had been reluctant to come to General Moreau's residence before, but Count Morkov asked him to go there to see what was happening.

After all, Moreau's ambitious wife and his ambitious mother-in-law both came back from Reunion Island in the Indian Ocean, while Josephine only came back from the Martinique colony in the Caribbean, which aroused jealousy of status.

According to rumors on the streets of Paris, there are indeed many republicans or royalists. Although they remain in France, they oppose the rule of the current Consulate and want to emulate the past by overthrowing the Directory or other means to ultimately end Bonaparte's rule. In this attempt to get Louis XVIII to return to Paris, it would be enough to find a John Monk-like figure.

The idea is good, but to put it into practice, you really need a suitable person to command the army.

At this time, General Moreau among the Republicans will inevitably attract some people's attention.

When Solovyov arrived at Moro's official residence, he was quickly recognized by the other party.

"It's you again, Michelle, coming to my residence to attend such a salon event. I remember you used to avoid appearing in my house."

"General Moreau, can we have a good chat?"

Moro also found it strange. This young Russian man had never spoken to him in such a serious manner in private before. At most, he would just exchange pleasantries with him.

In this salon, many people were obviously immersed in food, dancing and conversation, and did not notice the actions of the male host who had been sitting in the corner.

"You should also know what kind of people gather in your home."

"These are my wife's guests. I can't do anything about it. From your point of view, Michel, you are supposed to be serving Russia's foreign policy, and you are obviously here to get information."

"Their fantastic plans will eventually fail. Some people underestimate the control of the current government. They even have people inside the Russian Embassy."

"Oh? How did you find out?"

Moreau was also curious about Solovyov's affairs. After all, he was able to sense the activities of spies, but he turned the tables and told a French general directly.

This general, who also came from a lawyer's family, was relatively reliable and one of his few acquaintances in the French army. They had even dealt with each other on the battlefield.

"Just sprinkle some special incense ash in the embassy and the room of the apartment I rented, and you can tell that someone has entered my room without permission. The apartment has not been touched because I hired a girl as a servant. She is at the door every day, so no one will come in easily. But in the embassy, ​​someone did take a letter from my bedroom drawer. Although, it was just a private letter."

However, Solovyov did not reveal what was in the lost letters. Those were his personal letters, which mentioned the possibility of France going to war with Britain in the near future, as well as an analysis of the actions to be taken by both sides.

It's just that a lot of the analysis here is obviously very accurate, but most of it is based on analysis rather than "historical knowledge". After all, a lot of changes have taken place here. Even if two people have sex in bed, the children born may not be the same person. After all, there are not so many quantitative things. Activities in a historical period are not like playing KOEI games, where only the characters are fixed, but the direction of the game will also change.

"Unfortunately, General Moreau, the things I wrote in the letter have all been fulfilled. This will inevitably lead to war, but the French navy will not be able to break through the English Channel. The quality gap between your naval commanders and your army commanders is too great."

"What do you mean by that?"

Moreau probably thought he was going to say something mysterious and didn't take it seriously at first.

"I think someone will find you and involve you in a conspiracy. Even if you can prove that you are innocent, your future in France will probably be ruined." "Michel, I have to be responsible for saying this. I know you chose to be here because others will not overhear anything. And my loyalty to the cause of the Republic is greater than that of the friends of the First Consul. At least the wealth I personally gained from the war and my annual salary are all innocent."

It has to be said that Lannes' lavish spending triggered an investigation, which eventually forced him to temporarily leave Paris, and also declared that he and Bessières were no longer friends.

"You believe that you are innocent and that you have done things uprightly. You also have a lawyer's license and are very familiar with the laws of the Republic."

"You talk like a Jacobin, like a Frenchman."

"That's not surprising. Everyone in Europe knows that our young emperor's teacher was Mr. Laharpe of Switzerland, and he himself had liberal tendencies. And one of my benefactors, Count Pavel Stroganov, was once a member of the Jacobin Club and served as a secretary. It's not surprising that he was influenced by it."

Moro listened to the other party's revelations. In fact, everyone in Europe had heard something about Alexander, so he didn't find it strange.

"Michelle, you can continue."

"I think you think you have always done things cleanly, but you can't avoid people accusing you. There is also an old Chinese saying, 'If you want to accuse someone, you can always find a pretext.'"

"You mean to say that if you want to convict someone, you will try to frame him with a crime?"

"Yes, General, you are a smart man, and it is indeed easy to chat with smart people. That's all I can say. It still depends on you how you choose to go."

"Is that all I have to say?"

In fact, Moreau also knew that this young man was the last disciple trained by the staff of Marshal Suvorov who had defeated him. It was not the first time that the two sides appeared on the same battlefield, from Verona to Novi.

"I want to give you a little advice. Like our emperor, I don't like the British very much. The British will inevitably stir up relations between countries. France and Russia have always been friendly countries, but it is inevitable that they will fight each other."

This is not wrong. After Peter the Great went to the Netherlands, he came back to promote total Westernization. In fact, he also required all the masters to learn French. Although some Russian aristocrats were pro-British in spirit, the mainstream was still spiritually French.

Paul and Alexander actually had no psychological pressure to form an alliance with France, but they just wanted France not to always impose its own ways on Russia.

"Thank you. You are a respectable person as both an opponent and a friend. I just don't think this kind of thing will happen. I will not violate any law of the Republic. Even if you say my wife is a stupid woman, I still choose to believe her. I am loyal to the cause of the Republic, and I will not violate this."

There was certainly nothing wrong with saying this before he returned to Europe in 1813, but it was a great irony that he finally appeared in the anti-French coalition as an individual.

In fact, Solovyov thought of one thing, that is, the most tactically talented American generals were probably those of the Confederate Army during the Civil War, and they were quite different from those of the Union Army who fought like the Japanese invaders invading the village.

No one in the United States knows how to fight a war, but they are very good at second jobs, such as being actors and politicians.
No matter what, Moreau's final outcome would probably be to go to the United States. He did nothing, and did not choose to become the First Consul's brother-in-law or son-in-law. In fact, he had the Rhine Army as his base, so he could not feel at ease.

"You won't go against it, but what about others? Maybe one day, people will change. If you are really involved in the political turmoil, only self-exile can solve this problem."

Speaking of which, among those capable men under Moro, those who defended him were not very lucky. Many of them were sent to guard those islands and colonies, or later sent to Spain and some minor battlefields.

Although it sounds like he is speaking for Russia's enemies, Solovyov's logical chain is still very clear.

"If you have somewhere to go, it will only be the United States. From what I know about the United States, they will probably fight with Britain again. In essence, the current world dispute is the confrontation between Britain and France. Britain will do everything it can to contain France, including supporting those who used bombs to assassinate the First Consul, or violating the Treaty of Amiens, which is still wet with ink. There may be more shameless actions in the future. I think only by going to the United States can you make some small contribution to France."

Solovyov was paying attention to Moro's expression. He should have listened, but it was impossible to guess how long he could listen and what he thought.

"USA."

"Also, I want to say that no matter what happens, you must not return to this continent before peace is restored in Europe. The trouble you can cause to the British in the New World will be greater than the value you can create by joining any party when you return."

In fact, Moreau knew that in terms of talent, he was inferior to Napoleon in every aspect, except for being more fair and loyal to the republican system. Therefore, he never openly opposed Napoleon, and even assisted him in seizing power on the 18th Brumaire.

This conversation was indeed not overheard by any spies, but it made Moreau aware that the conflict between Britain and the United States would surely intensify one day.

Given the current situation in Paris, it seems like he is sitting there, waiting for the final judgment of fate.

The wheels will always turn, he said to Solovyov after thinking for a moment.

"Thank you, Michel, but all this is not enough to see the final judgment of fate. Like the First Consul, you seem to believe that fate is determined by oneself."

"That's right, General. You have a long way to go. I think it's right here. It's not something that others can influence. In the end, you still have to make your own way. That's probably it."

"Thank you, but you should also be aware that I am under constant surveillance here. If I expel you from France too early, you probably won't be able to complete what you want to do."

"Yes, that also includes helping my stepmother find relatives."

But the most terrible thing is that Solovyov was so busy helping Moreau analyze the situation that he forgot about his own affairs. The answer was in the hands of these French generals.

(End of this chapter)