Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

Solovyov didn't care what was happening in St. Petersburg because everything was going to unfold clearly, especially the succession.

Although he was far away in Crimea, considering that the Governor-General of Moscow, Golitsyn, was the brother of Countess Stroganova and they were quite familiar with each other during the war, he was able to know about any developments there.

For example, Katya corresponded with him regularly and mentioned what had been happening in St. Petersburg's high society recently.

The most interesting thing is that Miss Sofia Naryshkina was pursued by many young nobles who rushed to establish a good relationship with her before she came of age, and there was probably a constant stream of marriage proposals.

Solovyov knew that this was Alexander's most beloved illegitimate daughter, the apple of his eye besides the "Seven Fairies," and that her wedding would be a grand affair.

As for these competitors, he was not surprised to see his younger brother Vasily among them.

In comparison, the other guys came from better families, and Vasily followed his own path as a heart thief.

This kid, although he's my half-brother, he's mastered this move without any instruction.

But these kinds of things are free competition, and the second brother Anton didn't encounter much competition. After all, Marina was secretly raised in their own home. Although she was Paul's illegitimate daughter, she had relatively little contact with the outside world.

Sonia is different. Her mother was Alexander's most beloved mistress in the past, so she must have appeared in public a lot. There were quite a few young men who knew her in social situations, so she naturally had many suitors, making the competition very fierce.

Even Vasily wasn't at a significant advantage, as there were quite a few other guys on the same track.

Marrying such a girl into the family isn't a good thing for the younger brother's future, but as the older brother, he still has some plans.

For example, Arkady's daughter is of a suitable age, so it's not a bad thing for the young man to get married a few years later.

But this is not something he can decide.

Another important matter is that Alexander plans to send Louise to the south for recuperation in the autumn. Preparations are underway in Taganrog, so there's no need for the governor to personally oversee the process.

Because everyone knows that Solovyov rose to power quickly by virtue of his position as a guard and aide-de-camp. If things were entrusted to him, Taganrog would have to be demolished and rebuilt, and this work was supposed to start last year.

Solovyov's Yalta was unfortunately not chosen by Alexander.

This Tsar has become increasingly mysterious since he reached middle age. Solovyov used to be able to figure him out and just flatter him, but now that trick doesn't seem to work as well anymore.

But out of sight, out of mind. At least there's no one to guide me on what I'm doing in Crimea. Yalta is too close to Simferopol. I don't need to ride a horse; Alexander's coachman can just drive the carriage and we can get there quickly.

They chose Taganrog because traveling by land would be too slow, and the Azov fleet didn't have any steamships, so coming by sea to this area wasn't a good option either.

Therefore, there is no immediate guidance, and thus no micro-management.

Alexander himself is currently only inspecting the army and maintaining his personal presence in front of the troops; he has left everything else to his ministers.

Solovyov's situation is much simpler; his focus is on developing agriculture and industry, while the military is currently a secondary concern.

When it comes to warfare, the Russian army probably really can't do without a commander like Solovyov.

He even had a hard time finding competitors on both tracks.

If it weren't for the fact that his noble status was something he had acquired through sheer luck, and that even the original baronial title in his family was officially granted only after Paul's assassination and he had no Rurik blood at all, some people might have had some reservations.

However, in Europe, nobility was still judged by bloodline and family background, and this was especially true in Russia, which was influenced by the Golden Horde.

During the Mongol rule, high-ranking officials were always given priority. Therefore, even without military power, Han nobles still had a lot of room to survive and might even be ranked higher than some Semu people in the selection of officials.

Of course, Solovyov had no interest in this; he was with the late Queen of Prussia and Louise.
Napoleon was a complete failure as a monarch; he was nothing more than a plunderer, never taking a break to recuperate and rebuild. France's national strength was ultimately wasted, and his military victories were all in vain.

Solovyov's administration in 1823 focused on agricultural and livestock production.

He planned to get involved in wool and cotton textiles. Russia has excellent wool varieties, but the native cotton varieties are not very good.

He recalled his connection to the Egyptian ruler Muhammad Ali Pasha and planned to take advantage of the brief period of peace between Russia and Turkey to import some cotton seeds.

Of course, he also knew that Muhammad Ali Pasha would never be content to be just a Pasha to the Sultan. In the future, Egypt would separate from the Ottoman Empire, and if it weren't for the intervention of Western European countries, he probably would have taken down the Sultan's capital as well.

There were many unstable factors within the Ottoman Empire. The landmines planted by Solovyov, Serbia and Greece were obvious examples, and the Albanian Pasha of Epirus was a local tyrant who had always been there.

However, with landmines secretly planted in Egypt and along the edge of the Caucasus Mountains, if the Ottoman Empire continues its unruly ways, the Ottoman army will likely suffer a beating from the locals before the iron fist of Russia arrives.

Looking back, we need to examine the spring planting plan of 1823. Solovyov wanted to ensure the production of grain and meat, and even made a direct decision to plant corn.

His jurisdiction is very suitable for growing corn, both as animal feed and as a staple food.

For herders, they also need feed, and Solovyov seized on this point. There are always pain points to address, and he opened up new avenues for development.

Moreover, he doesn't act recklessly. Only his own area is suitable for growing corn, but not every piece of land is suitable.

He also has some ideas about wheat breeding.

From an agricultural perspective, temperature difference is very important. He built a greenhouse in Simferopol and strictly controlled the temperature and humidity, which is very meaningful for planting.

If the environment is not suitable, the seedlings will grow too tall and spindly during cultivation, resulting in weak seedlings and reduced economic value.

Lysenko's wheat vernalization is an excellent local breeding strategy that can be used as a breeding method in temperate high-latitude environments. However, he used it as a tool for pseudoscience and political struggle, which goes beyond the scope of agriculture.

Solovyov is now using this method to promote new breeding techniques in Odessa and Crimea, which have absolutely nothing to do with genetics.

If we use Lysenko's theory to explain it, then Louise's daughters should resemble him because he often appeared in the palace and was nearby when he taught their uncle. But in fact, only two of the girls were his children, not all of them.

This is a guiding approach. Genetics cultivates new varieties through the selection of traits over several generations. Before Mendel's peas and fruit flies appeared, genetics was still a mystery in many aspects. Solovyov himself was unwilling to publish any theories using his advanced knowledge in this area, nor did he intend to challenge any church authority at the last few junctures. He simply used the "I think" approach to guide farmers in planting, and those who strictly followed his methods would inevitably reap the rewards.

In comparison, in order to achieve better harvests, others must follow the effective practices of these farmers, which will enable the methods to be quickly promoted.

Whether it's a lord's estate or a self-sufficient farmer, a protected semi-free peasant or a serf, many people will follow suit.

Solovyov's method has been tested for the past few years, and this year should be the time to see results.

Things don't happen overnight; there are even ups and downs over the next few years.

At least this year, officials in various places have issued guidelines according to his instructions. Solovyov even relied more on the church and the gentlemen on the estates who were willing to listen to him. The military settlements were another matter.

He himself also rode around these lands in Crimea, and only about half of the arable land was managed according to his instructions.

Not everyone believes; seeing is believing.

Even so, it's still a great achievement.

The lords elsewhere wouldn't have had the practical experience and personally provided guidance like he did.

That mad king George III, who called himself "Farmer George," was able to direct the area around the royal estates, and Solovyov went a step further.

As for fertilizer, he noticed that some harvested tomatoes were turning green two years ago, which was a sign of potassium deficiency. Therefore, he specially imported a batch of processing materials from the swamps around Belarus, where potassium fertilizer will be produced. Last year, he achieved great results, and this year he will vigorously promote it.

However, the ratio of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium still needs further adjustment, and the required ratio varies for different plots of land.

He couldn't do everything himself, so he invited a group of botanical experts and experienced farmers who knew how to cultivate the land to promote the method in various places. With the supervision of officials, the information was always conveyed level by level.

However, Russia was still a feudal serfdom state, and the whip of the master was probably more effective for serfs. Solovyov's unconventional method required a lot of explanation and was actually limited.

Unfortunately, his words were quite credible, which compensated for the systemic problems, and many people worked for him because of his influence.

It could be said that Solovyov has always been a shameless salesman.

Many of the soldiers who returned from the army had fought alongside him on the battlefield, and were finally able to go home after serving their full term.

Some serfs gained high prestige because of his years of traveling courts, where he personally adjudicated cases as governor, dismissing and investigating those obstructive officials.

As for the noblemen, they knew that Solovyov's actions were based on his own logic, and the key point was that they were beneficial to everyone.

It's time to showcase our advanced productivity and open the eyes of those backward old men.

In the end, he still took office with the Tsar's orders. As long as there is no brain-dead Tsar sitting on the throne, a traditional and backward country like Russia would still like to have a Tsar as a stepfather. At least Paul and Alexander, one was willing to take charge and the other had a good attitude, which was well known to the people.

Especially since Alexander had loyal ministers, capable ministers, and treacherous ministers around him, and in the serfs' simple sense of right and wrong, Solovyov possessed the first two qualities.

He can fight, manage affairs, and is even somewhat omnipotent.

This naturally reduces the difficulty of promotion.

However, the serfs also had some opinions about what to plant, because Solovyov had also stipulated the proportion of cultivation in different regions.

Just like how General Hannibal promoted "local apples," which are potatoes, a specialty of Siberia, there will inevitably be some objections to cultivating new crops here now.

Because many farmers had never seen new varieties, they were used to the old methods. Solovyov's words carried weight, and it was rare to see such a busy and upright official in Russia, so everyone accepted his advice.

During the spring planting season, the crops that can be seen in the fields now are growing very well, even from the seedling stage.

When Solovyov rode past the military settlement near Simferopol, he dismounted and was delighted by what he saw.

This inevitably made him somewhat optimistic.

"Sir, the rice seedlings planted this year are growing really well."

"Don't add too much phosphorus to the soil."

"Sir, what is phosphorus?"

Solovyov also knew that although Russia was a chemical powerhouse, there were still many areas where it fell short.

The experts' knowledge did not reach the serfs' ears, so Solovyov could only tell them, according to local conditions, what should be applied as phosphate fertilizer.

The simplest example is ground bone meal, which contains a lot of phosphorus. If too much is added, the resulting short, sturdy, and thick seedlings will lose their value, and the yield cannot be guaranteed.

Once he says it, the old farmers in the fields will understand.

It's rare to find an old man who, although he doesn't do the work himself, is very familiar with the land, so let's do it his way.

As for potash fertilizer, the raw materials used at this time were mainly from Belarus.

The most important organic matter is something that farmers in the countryside tend to listen to their elders about, because the fermented manure they used a few years ago, which had no odor at all, was indeed very useful and much better than the smelly stuff they used when fertilizing themselves.

This is because crops always need organic matter, and the soil will be more fertile if the organic matter content is high enough.

As for the many problems in agriculture, Solovyov also needed to address them along with literacy campaigns. (End of Chapter)