Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

The Girls' Tower left a deep impression on Solovyov; it's probably the spot where he's standing now. In The World Is Not Enough, 007 shot Sophie Marceau, and Bond shed a rare tear.

He can find peace and quiet here, and have some space to himself.

"Just like this, we need to bring together representatives from all sides in Constantinople to form a city council and management system, ensure the supply of food and drinking water, and if necessary, have the navy transport supplies here."

Solovyov clearly remembered how much supplies he had stockpiled in Crimea, enough to supply the area even if his grain reserves were depleted.

Moreover, now that the Turkish army has been defeated, the Sultan has issued a decree that at least in the European part of the war is a ceasefire.

"How to manage the supply of food for hundreds of thousands of people is also a big problem."

Solovyov had previous experience managing large cities, which made things relatively easier for him.

Even though Constantinople is now under Russian occupation, we must be mindful of the situation there, especially religious and ethnic conflicts, and respect the local customs.

Some Ottoman officials who experienced Napoleon's invasion of Egypt were in their middle age at the time. I remember the French were the same, except that Napoleon was pragmatic.

Solovyov's housekeeper was indeed a Turkish noblewoman abducted by the Serbs, and he himself actually knew some religious doctrines, which looked like a mixture of Sufism and other teachings.

But this was still better than those who knew nothing at all. Therefore, after the regulations governing Constantinople were issued, the priests had no objections, because the new governor stated that some precedents should be handled according to their respective traditional laws.

The Greeks and Armenians here follow the law, while the Turks and Arabs there follow Islamic law.

However, there are some issues that require deliberation between the governor and the court to resolve.

Solovyov, in his capacity as governor, also promulgated some new laws, which some people could not understand, but they had to try to understand them even if they couldn't.

Solovyov disagreed with calls from some to demolish the minarets surrounding the Hagia Sophia, instead believing that the area could be utilized.

Moreover, he did not disturb the Blue Mosque, and the churches, mosques, monasteries, and almshouses in the city were managed in the same way as before.

Some of the captured soldiers, after screening, were found to be from the local area and were released to go home and reunite with their families.

Solovyov's arrangements were satisfactory to everyone, and Nicholas focused on negotiating with Mahmud II.

Because Russian troops entered the city, and the British and French ambassadors also sided with Russia and remained neutral, the Sultan had no choice but to accept the surrender.

For the Ottoman Empire, this meant the permanent loss of its European territory. Apart from Bosnia, which remained under Ottoman control, Serbia, Montenegro, Greece, Albania, Wallachia, and Bulgaria were all set to gain independence and divide their territories.

Constantinople was to be designated a neutral city simply because Russia realized that maintaining a military presence there without direct rule was a viable strategy.

Sudan himself disagreed, but now that he was captured, he had no way to call on Turkish troops from the Asian region to fight the Russian army. It was obvious that he couldn't win.

Sudan was thus forced to agree to the complete independence of the aforementioned regions, with each region already under its control expanding its territory.

However, both Britain and France had their own interests, a point that Nicholas was well aware of.

He then went to the Maiden's Tower in person, where Solovyov often appeared.

"Your Majesty, you can simply send someone to summon me; there is no need for you to condescend to come in person."

“I’m just a little worried that the British probably won’t agree to us taking control of the city, even as a free city.”

“If the British think that way, they also need to consider that we control this place, and that Robinson is now the Prime Minister. I have ways to deal with him.”

Nikolai found this very strange, since Solovyov had clearly never met Robinson in person.

"How is this going?"

“Robinson’s past push for corn laws in the UK made him very unpopular as a Member of Parliament.”

"I see. But who will become prime minister next?"

“His Majesty George IV will probably choose someone with prestige, who can keep his subordinates in check, and who is also tough on the job. More importantly, he will listen to the opinions of the civil servants. But Princess Charlotte is different; she would prefer someone who can carry out the royal family’s decisions.”

Surprisingly, while the lazy George IV was indeed incapable of managing anything, Princess Charlotte still held considerable prestige. She was able to persuade the Whigs to listen to her, and in accordance with the traditional British system of monarch versus heir apparent, the princess would support the opposition.

Therefore, Britain will remain in turmoil for a while, which will be enough for Russia to take action.

Solovyov then offered another proposal: "Your Majesty, we guarantee the integrity of the Ottoman Empire's Asian territories, but they must guarantee the safety of life and property of Christians in Palestine, Syria, and Assyria, as well as Cyprus, where we can consider its independence, since it is predominantly Greek."

"I don't think the Sultan will agree."

"Although he is still the master of Constantinople, he is also our prisoner. We have only shown him leniency, which is why we have not taken any harsh measures against him."

Of course, it shouldn't provoke a strong backlash like Menshikov did.

Solovyov's approach was relatively restrained, but he had already captured a large amount of land, and if Sudan did not accept it, it would only mean the continuation of the war.

If the fighting continues, the Ottoman Sultan will be captured, and the remaining territories will likely be leaderless.

If even the current treaty is not agreed to, the consequences will only be worse.

The Greeks in Pontus, the coastal Greeks, and the Armenians in Asia haven't made any major moves yet.

If things had been done too harshly all at once, the Ottoman Empire probably wouldn't have existed, and the situation in the Middle East would have been in complete chaos.

If Asia descends into chaos, it might actually be more advantageous for the British in the future.

It is currently unclear whether Egypt supports Britain or France.

The French invested heavily in Egypt, at every level, but ultimately the British were the ones to reap the rewards—that was almost inevitable. This is because Britain's naval strength was still superior, and if Egypt were to choose an ally, Britain would be the more suitable candidate.

As for Russia itself, even in the era of opening a passage to the Mediterranean, or even in the era of wooden warships, if the Royal Navy were to really fight, the combined forces of France, Russia, and Spain might not be able to defeat them.

Therefore, what Russia needs is access to the sea. Only with access to the Mediterranean and the Indian Ocean can it find opportunities to break through Britain's strategic deployment in the future.

Before his mission, Solovyov had done some preparatory work, such as strengthening relations with the Qing Dynasty and other countries along the route that were interested in improving relations with Russia, and engaging in bilateral interactions with them.

However, these are only preliminary preparations; there is still much to be done.

Turkey was just the beginning. Fortunately, Britain itself was in turmoil, with three cabinets changing in a single year. By winter, the Robinson cabinet was no longer trusted, and it seemed that George IV was about to form a new cabinet and invite the Duke of Wellington to come out of retirement as prime minister.

He will probably lose all his "prestige" in this position, becoming an unpopular prime minister due to some of his policies.

Although he was genuinely unafraid of Napoleon and capable of accomplishing many things.

At this time, Russia and the Ottoman Empire signed a new treaty.

This window of opportunity will not reopen once it's gone. Even if Britain wants to interfere in the affairs of Constantinople, it must consider the terrible consequences that such perverse actions will have in the Christian world of the cross.

At least these Catholic countries in Europe support Constantinople becoming a free city, to ensure the smooth flow of traffic between the two straits and avoid any trouble. After all, the benefits are shared, and the Americans never expected that they would have a share.

Sultan Mahmud II of the Ottoman Empire could move his court to Bursa, away from the location of the tombs of the successive sultans, and he could even take the palace's property with him, leaving much of it still belonging to His Majesty the Sultan.

The Russian governor's residence, as well as the new city hall of Constantinople, are located at the Maiden's Tower and the Sultan's Palace, respectively. The Tsar himself plans to spend the winter here, and before that, a military parade will be held.

However, Empress Dowager Maria's health had also deteriorated, and Nicholas, always a filial son, prepared to return to St. Petersburg after the military parade.

Solovyov and Vorontsov stayed behind to handle the aftermath, taking charge of disarming Turkish forces outside of Bosnia and redividing the territories of the newly independent Balkan states.

As an arbitrator, Russia still holds some sway among its Slavic and Orthodox brothers in this matter.

Freedom of religion was maintained within Constantinople, and all factions were required to respect each other. However, some Turks left the city to follow His Majesty the Sultan to Bursa.

It is quite surprising that Russia made almost no demands for war reparations from the Ottoman Empire.

It was also Nikolai's instruction before he left that he should make a gesture.

Mahmud II was aware of the situation and gave Nicholas a batch of jewels as a "gift" and also to thank him for his generosity.

If it had been Timur, or if it had fallen into the hands of the Serbs, the outcome probably wouldn't have been so good.

However, for His Majesty the Sultan, the loss of European territories will bring them considerable trouble in the future.

Mohammed Ali Pasha of Egypt will certainly not be content with being the Pasha of Egypt; he may seek to go further.

The local Pashamen were probably not as loyal to the Sultan's court, which had moved to Bursa.

After being defeated by Russia, Persia might even send its forces into Mesopotamia.

Solovyov understood the border disputes between the Persians and Turks, and that such things could really happen.

The Persians did not yield to Russia, let alone the greatly weakened Ottoman Empire.

Given their situation, Solovyov could imagine that what was lost in Russia could perhaps be made up for from the Ottoman Empire.

In the Caucasus region, Russia is not so lenient and will still demand war reparations. Some of Azerbaijan's rich territories will also be occupied by Russian troops, who will only withdraw after raising the money in Azerbaijan.

There may be a lot of trouble over there at that time. Even if war doesn't break out, we should still make a contingency plan in advance.

Solovyov would give this matter further thought and also instructed his adjutant to pay attention to intelligence gathering.

The next step is to get the Free City Council in Constantinople to play its role.

Solovyov himself probably never imagined that after the restoration of the "New Rome," the organizational structure there, because Russia did not want to provoke other countries too much, would eventually be transplanted to Constantinople from the Venetian Doge's system after liberating the Balkans and bringing Bessarabia under its control.

There are also permanent ambassadors from countries such as Britain, France, and Russia here to oversee the existence of Constantinople and the two straits as a neutral zone, as well as the operation of the two houses of the Constantinople Parliament.

Solovyov himself was very cautious about the political structure, and he required those in the military with legal backgrounds to refer to the laws of various countries to legislate here, and customary law could only be used in certain areas.

On this point, the various parties in the city do not object. Many of the Turks who were able to stay in Constantinople are secularists and are not so extreme in this regard.

Those who value religion tend to live in inland areas, far from this circle, so it won't cause them any trouble.

By the time Mihrima arrived in Constantinople, most of the work was done, except for the Russian garrison and the temporary governor's office.

Because the city did not yet have its own autonomous army, the Russian troops had to help the Constantinople parliament train a militia to defend the city before they left.

He was efficient and decisive in his work, and quickly made arrangements. However, military training would take time, and the Russian garrison in Constantinople would need to be maintained for some time.

He even had to resolve the border dispute between Bulgaria and Greece here, and Solovyov knew these things were troublesome. Besides, representatives from various countries constantly complained to him, hoping to gain advantages for their side during his term.

When Nikolai returned to St. Petersburg, he was given a three-year term, with the hope that he could take care of things in the Eastern Mediterranean during that time.

Therefore, he could not take up a post elsewhere for the time being, and the position of Minister of War needed to be filled by someone else.

It seems that the conflict between Persia and the Ottoman Empire is coming to an end, and the Shah of Persia is no longer able to fight.

But no one could have predicted what unexpected events would occur with the Persians. (End of Chapter)