The Qing Dynasty is about to end

Chapter 902 Alexander III: Has Her Majesty the Queen also been cursed by the devil?

On the outskirts of St. Petersburg, in a corner of the Summer Palace, under the shade of a sparse birch grove, Alexander III sat alone.

A wooden stool made of white wood, an old fishing rod that looked as if it might break at any moment, were firmly held in a pair of enormous hands. The river flowed slowly in the shadows cast by the leaves, the fishing line dangling in the water. Even sitting still, his massive body gave the impression that he might jump up at any moment and beat up his neighbor. Tsar Alexander III, nearly two meters tall and with a physique as imposing as a bear, ruled his vast empire spanning Eurasia in the summer of 1882.

"……His Majesty."

A deep, cautious voice sounded from behind, deliberately lowering its volume, as if afraid of disturbing a fish that didn't actually exist in the water.

Alexander III did not turn around, nor did he even move: "Are the British going to declare war on the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom?"

His voice was deep, with a hint of anticipation.

The Empire's newly appointed Foreign Minister, Giles, shook his head slightly: "I'm sorry, Your Majesty, no."

The Tsar gave a barely audible hum: “Then tell Lord Morrill that the Tsar is fishing. He can wait, or—” he paused, “—and come back tomorrow.”

Giles took a deep breath and lowered his voice even further: "Your Majesty, I implore you... to summon him immediately. Today's meeting is crucial to whether... Great Britain can be completely plunged into the abyss of a full-scale war with the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom!"

The river continued to flow. After a full thirty seconds, Alexander III finally made a move. He turned his head, his gaze sharp as a knife, and looked at Giles and the two ministers standing two steps behind him—Army Minister Ivanovsky and Naval Director General Shestakov—the three of them didn't look very serious today, as if they were trying hard to suppress their laughter.

The Tsar's thick beard twitched: "What's wrong? Why do you three look at each other like you've seen the biggest joke in the world?"

“Your Majesty…” Giles struggled to suppress the urge to burst out laughing: “The British Ambassador, Lord Morrill, said that Her Majesty the Queen… desires that the Russian Empire provide… witches to the British Royal Navy.”

What? A witch! Could it be...?

Alexander III's usually fearless, bearded face suddenly contorted with unusual terror. He leaped abruptly from the wooden stool. Then, a nearly two-meter-tall "Russian bear" stood before the three Russian ministers, its voice rising sharply, filled with dread:

"A witch?! What did you say? Could it be... could it be that Her Majesty Queen Victoria... was also... cursed by that devil from the East?!"

The word "curse" rolled through the ears of the three ministers like a thunderclap!

Tsar Nicholas died on March 2, 1855, because of Luo Yaoguo's "prophecy" or "curse"—the "curse" was so severe that death came immediately! It was practically a "curse, executed immediately," without even a "reprieve"!

This "curse killing incident" has long been a nightmare deeply etched into the marrow of the core members of the Romanov dynasty! In their eyes, Luo Yaoguo was never a "prophet king," but a devil from hell, or even possibly the devil himself, Satan!
In short, he's someone you absolutely shouldn't mess with.
Seeing the Tsar's reaction, Giles, Ivanovsky, and Shestakov, who had been suppressing their laughter, froze instantly! The absurd smiles on their faces vanished completely—they had to be in sync with His Majesty the Tsar, including their expressions!

Giles took a deep breath, making his voice sound grave: “Your Majesty, Lord Morrill did not mention any allegations of a ‘curse.’ He merely very… cautiously conveyed to us concerns from London. According to British intelligence—especially from the Sasebo government of Japan, which they support—the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom is likely… sending a special group of personnel known as ‘naval witches’ to the Spanish-American naval fleet under their control.”

"It is said that these priestesses are not ordinary soldiers. They possess a kind of ritual method that incorporates Eastern mysticism, which can effectively improve the hit rate of fleet artillery in actual combat, help the propulsion system operate stably under maximum load, and even... possibly enable ships to obtain more favorable wind direction selection and local ocean current assistance during navigation through communication with 'natural spirits' or some kind of unknown 'field intervention'..."

Alexander III gasped again! His voice was low and filled with apprehension:
"Is this true?! Could it be... could it be that all these years, besides driving his subjects to build massive steel ships, lay railways, and mine mines, projecting his blasphemous 'heavenly' power across the world... he hasn't even slacked off in his evil 'cultivation'?! His magical power... is still growing?!" The Tsar suddenly realized that he might very well be living in a "magical world"! And he was just a mortal king without a single ounce of magic.

“My God!” Alexander III’s voice rang out clearly in the open woodland. “How can Russia—God’s shield and the guardian of the Orthodox world—defeat such a blasphemous devil who walks among men?!”

"Your Majesty!" Army Minister Ivanovsky stepped forward abruptly, his voice booming, attempting to pull the Tsar from his fear of the mysterious forces back to realistic strategic considerations. "We Russians do not need to touch that unknown darkness!"

Shestakov, realizing what was happening, quickly added, "His Excellency Ivanovsky is right! Our great Russian Empire has its own clear and sacred mission! This mission was already guided by Peter the Great and confirmed by the radiance of Empress Catherine II—that is to head south! To reclaim the holy city of Constantinople, restore the glory of the Roman Empire, and raise the banner of St. Andrew on the golden dome of Hagia Sophia!"

"And who is the real enemy hindering our holy war? It is not the devil from the East, but the British Mediterranean Fleet, which is actually blockading the Dardanelles Strait."

The Director General of the Navy emphasized, “Even if Your Majesty were to order every single Gobitov warship, even if all ten of our ‘King Nicholas-class’ ships were completed and commissioned—not a single one would be able to get through the Bosphorus and the Dardanelles! As long as the British Mediterranean Fleet is still there, our fleet, our dream of rebuilding the Rome of the Black Sea, will forever remain just a… grand plan written on paper!”

Alexander III's brow furrowed deeply: "How could this be? Those 'Emperor-class' ships, tailor-made for the Black Sea, have no chance of winning in the anticipated near-shore combat? Ten 'Emperor-class' ships cost a total of 5500 million rubles! So much money!"

Shestakov gave a wry smile and spread his hands: "Your Majesty, the results of the Battle of Oahu show that any capital ship without rapid-fire guns, no matter its tonnage or armor thickness, is a giant, slow-moving sitting duck in front of fast armored cruisers equipped with rapid-fire guns! The core of our 'King Nicholas-class's' firepower consists of two massive 305mm recoil-propelled guns mounted on the bow, which are very powerful and capable of destroying any inferior Turkish warship at close range! But its rate of fire and speed are too slow..."

"Enough!" Alexander III abruptly waved his hand, his voice deep and resonant. "While the Emperor-class battleships are not perfect, I am even more certain of one thing—Russia has only two eternal and most reliable allies! The Russian Army and the Russian Navy!"

This ancient proverb, however, sounds incredibly tragic at this moment.

Foreign Secretary Giles seized the opportunity and hurriedly advised: "Your Majesty, precisely for this reason, we should outwardly adopt a more proactive pro-British policy—not only to be pro-British, but to become the most resolute and powerful driving force behind Britain's plunge into the abyss of the Pacific! Until we watch with our own eyes the main fleet of the Royal Navy completely disappear at the edge of the western horizon!"

He paused for a moment, then threw out his key bargaining chip: "The 'witch' that the Queen needs is the tool we use to push Britain onto the battlefield to fight the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom!"

He said with certainty: "First of all, unlike the Central and Western European countries that have experienced brutal witch hunts, our vast Russian Empire covers thousands of miles and has many ethnic groups. In particular, the folk shaman traditions in Siberia, the Caucasus and the far north have never been completely eradicated! There must be some powerful witches there - we just need to 'integrate' them into the 'Russian Orthodox Holy Women's Order'!"

He paused, then continued, “Secondly, as early as 1852, the Russian Orthodox Church noticed the unusual event of the ‘Eastern devil’ ‘descending from the sky’ at the Suoyidu battlefield in reports brought back by missionaries. Over the past thirty years, the Church has established a special secret research institution to continuously track and evaluate these events, accumulating a wealth of valuable observational records. We can use these ‘achievements’ as a basis to package a complete theoretical and practical system of ‘Russian Orthodox Church's methods for counterbalancing Eastern heresy,’ as an ‘exclusive technology export’ to Britain. This not only satisfies the Queen's needs but also allows us to greatly strengthen our alliance with Britain on a spiritual level!”

"Good!" Russia's "Bear Tsar" was clearly happy to push Britain into the abyss!
"Nikolai Karlovich, you are in full charge of this matter! Make sure it is done perfectly!" The Tsar pondered for a moment, "That Orthodox Church official you mentioned earlier, the one in charge of researching the Eastern...devil problem? What's his name?"

“It is Father Tupolev, Your Majesty,” Ivanovsky replied immediately. “In addition, on the army front, Colonel Sukhoi and Colonel Mikoyan served as military advisors to ‘Eastern King Yang Xiuqing’ for a long time in Korea, and have in-depth firsthand knowledge of that Eastern…devil’s organization and…possible weaknesses.”

Alexander III’s gaze swept over his three trusted ministers before finally settling on Foreign Minister Giles: “Father Tupolev, Colonel Sukhoi, Colonel Mikoyan—let them go to England with our witches.”

Furthermore, Giles, you must personally inform the Supreme Council of the Orthodox Church, making them understand the extreme importance of this mission to the sacred cause of the Empire! We must send a 'coven of witches' possessing truly the noblest qualities of Russia! They must not only understand those…mystical knowledge, but more importantly—they must possess impeccable character! They must be dignified in appearance! They must be learned! They must be elegant and poised! They must be proficient in Orthodox theology and our court etiquette, and fluent in English and French!

The Tsar's voice was unquestionable: "They are about to embark on not only a demon-slaying journey, but also a journey to demonstrate the power of the Russian Empire! Their words and actions, the power of Russian faith and culture they embody, will directly influence how the British Royal Family and Parliament view our Russian Empire! Remember, they will represent the magical power of Russia and the wisdom of the Orthodox Church!"

(End of this chapter)