I am a literary giant in Russia

Chapter 225 Nicholas I's Arrangements and Alexander II

Here there is order, strict and unconditional laws, no one dares to presumptuously claim to know everything, there are no conflicts, everything is in perfect order; no one can give orders without first learning to obey; no one is allowed to surpass others without a legitimate reason; everything is subordinate to a clear goal, everything has its purpose.

That's why I enjoy being with these people, and that's why I will always cherish the call to arms of a soldier. I believe that life is simply about service, because everyone is serving.

Nicholas I's views on the army

At first, we were eager to make our voices heard. But we discovered they weren't joking; they needed us to be quiet and not cause trouble. Our intelligence was destined to become dull and stagnant; any clever idea violated the social order.

In other words, we were told that educated people were the lowest of the low in society and that military discipline was the only rule—thus, our younger generation lost all their spirit.

—The Diary of Inspector Nikichenko

The most well-known and greatest Tsar of the Romanov dynasty in Russia was Peter the Great, the fifth Tsar of the Romanov dynasty. He used his autocracy to forcefully lead a backward agricultural country into the path of modernization, and used barbarism to subdue Russia's barbarism.

Let's begin the story of the Romanov family's continuation with his passing.

This historical event that influenced the world begins with a cook named Marta, the daughter of a farmer from an ordinary place. Her husband was a passing cavalryman. After having his way with the beautiful cook, the cavalryman went straight to the battlefield and never returned.

Her fate was supposed to end there, but with the arrival of the Russian army, Marta was handed over to the officers as a war trophy.

So she first went to the bed of Count Shermiteev, then was introduced to Peter the Great’s favorite, the powerful Prince Minshkov, and finally, she ended up in Peter the Great’s bed.

And she remained forever. Peter the Great married this married cook, Marta was baptized, given the name Catherine Alexeyevna, and was crowned Empress by Peter the Great.

But this was not the end of the story. In 1725, Peter the Great fell critically ill. All his ministers gathered at his bedside. The emperor uttered only half a sentence: "To him all things." But he did not have time to say to whom.

Just as he was about to issue his most important order, Death, who was laughing hysterically at his upcoming prank, took the Tsar away prematurely.

As the courtiers began to discuss who should inherit this vast empire spanning half the world, Martha, the cook, entered with the Janissaries created by Peter the Great. Soon after, Martha became the ruler of this empire, namely Catherine I.

The method by which she acquired this empire subsequently became a traditional skill for the Romanov family to seize power.

After her death, Russian ministers hoped that the empire could return to the descendants of Peter the Great's brothers, and thus a new young Tsar was established. However, Elizabeth, unwilling to relinquish power, led the Guards into the palace like her mother Martha, and thus she became Elizabeth I.

Since Elizabeth had no legal spouse or children, she passed the throne to her nephew and arranged for him to marry a German princess.

This nephew later became Peter III, and because of his many outrageous acts, his wife, a princess from Germany, soon entered the palace again with her guards, and she became Catherine II, the famous Catherine the Great in Russian history.

When her son became Paul I, he did not know how to govern a country and harmed the interests of the nobles. Soon, the Praetorian Guard entered the palace again, killed him, and handed the throne to Paul I's son Alexander, who knew about the Praetorian Guard's plans.

By this point, being the Tsar had clearly become a high-risk profession, so much so that after Alexander I's death, his brothers Constantine and Nicholas passed the position around like a football, until finally Nicholas ascended the throne as Nicholas I.

Nicholas I did not receive a very good education; his greatest talent was undoubtedly military training, and he loved life in the military camp, where he discovered a certain order that fascinated him.

As he fearfully began to deal with the Decembrists, the Praetorian Guard, the fearful Nicholas I was astonished to discover, as events unfolded, that if a ruler is resolute and ruthless, then once the bravest men are dead, the remaining men become weaker and weaker.

Having realized this, out of a certain fear and a certain desire, Nicholas I began to implement the most comprehensive repression of the whole of Russia. The most symbolic event was the establishment of the Third Secret Police Agency, which oversaw almost every aspect of Russian society, including the literary field.

Because Nicholas I was well aware that sharp writing had caused riots in Europe, he forbade writers from criticizing the government, and even from praising it. In his words, "I will not allow them to interfere in any of my affairs."

He attached great importance to this field, so much so that even the head of the Third Bureau, Benkendorf, who was not interested in literature, had to frown and personally review a large number of literary manuscripts. In fact, even Tsar Nicholas I himself would personally serve as a censor.

A young man who is on his way to meet Nicholas I at this very moment is certainly well aware of this.

The 27-year-old was tall and imposing, dressed in a well-tailored Guards officer's uniform, and he undoubtedly possessed the typical Romanov family features: a broad forehead, a straight nose, and a well-defined chin.

As for why he knew that Nicholas I would personally participate in the investigation, it was because his name was Alexander Nikolayevich Romanov. As Nicholas I's eldest son, he naturally had a deep understanding of his father.

Even though it was a private occasion at the Romanov family home, he still chose to wear his military uniform to meet his father, simply because his father's favorite uniform was the military uniform.

Meanwhile, in his daily life, his father often slept on a military cot, covered with a military overcoat, and on a mattress filled with straw. He even wore his uniform for breakfast. His father looked down on the imperial robes and even when he was sick, he still slept wrapped in a military overcoat.

As a young man who once idolized his father, Alexander was also deeply influenced in this respect.

At this very moment, the crown prince of this vast empire was walking while contemplating matters concerning literary censorship.

Undoubtedly, even though his father worked 365 days a year, 16 to 18 hours a day, as the despotic ruler of an autocratic empire, he had far too many things to do every day, so he didn't have much energy to devote to literary censorship.

Or rather, only a very small number of dangerous individuals receive such treatment, like the poet Pushkin who died in a duel.

It is worth mentioning that in recent years his father has hardly devoted any time to literary censorship. After all, those Russian writers who could truly stir up trouble have either died or been integrated into the framework of the censorship system and could not make much of a splash.

Furthermore, his father wasn't particularly interested in literature, or even other art forms, so in recent years he mostly just listened to his subordinates' summaries and reports. But recently, however, Alexander's father has surprisingly begun to observe the Russian literary scene again, and even, for the first time ever, has started reading a large number of European newspapers!

It should be noted that his father hated European newspapers the most, to the point that they would be confiscated at the border. Unless bribery or other means were used, European newspapers simply could not enter Russia.

If one were to ask why, it would be that Nicholas I, who styled himself as the gendarme of Europe, was so tyrannical in some places that it bordered on absurd. Because of this behavior, when the young Alexander traveled through Europe a few years earlier, he often heard Europeans talking about how rude his father was in Berlin and openly mocking his father's behavior in London and Vienna.

In fact, European newspapers were filled with jokes mocking his father.

It would be strange if his father liked this kind of newspaper.

In particular, a book published in 1843 entitled "Russia in 1839" greatly angered his father.

In short, in 1839, the head of the Third Bureau, Benkendorf, came up with an idea to change public opinion. Essentially, a spy from the Third Bureau stationed in Paris reported that a famous Parisian writer, the Marquis of Cousin, wanted to travel to Russia and write some articles on the subject.

Because this influential writer supported absolute despotism, Behnkendorf thought it would be good to invite him over, saying, "His books will change the unfair views of Europeans."

Nikolai liked Benkendorf's idea so much that while inviting and entertaining the marquis, Nikolai even agreed to meet him.

Because the Marquis of Kustin was homosexual, he admired Nicholas's appearance and considered the masculine Nicholas to be the most handsome monarch in Europe. Unfortunately, the Marquis of Kustin advocated enlightened despotism, and the extent of despotism in Russia even greatly shocked this despot.

In short, the Marquis of Kustin wrote bluntly in his book: "Many countries have slaves, but to see so many court slaves, you have to go to Russia." "There, everything is oppressed, people cower in fear, everything is gloomy and quiet, and everything blindly follows the unseen stick."
He believed that Russia was held together by terror, slavery, lies, the Third Bureau, the Church, and despotism, and predicted that "Russia will break out into revolution within fifty years."

After Nikolai finished reading the book with great anticipation, he immediately threw it on the ground: "It's my fault! Why did I talk to this scoundrel!"

In this context, it was quite incredible that Nicholas I was reading so many European newspapers again. Young Alexander could understand his father's behavior, after all, who would have imagined that one day he would see Parisian newspapers filled with praise for the Russians?
Even if this person became famous in France with his works in French, even if the Parisian newspapers are either trying their best to erase his Russian identity or trying their best to smear him by using his Russian identity.
But none of this changes the obvious fact that he achieved tremendous success in Paris! And this man was undoubtedly Russian! Russian!

To put it dramatically, in just these past few months, the Parisian newspapers have published far more articles praising that young man named Mikhail than praising Tsar Nicholas I himself!

Has such a figure ever appeared in the Russian cultural scene?

Even as the crown prince, Alexander could only say he had never heard of such a thing.
In fact, Alexander had heard some news about this before, but because he was busy with government affairs at the time, and the writer in question was a commoner, he did not pay much attention to it.

In this respect, his father must have felt the same way.

Undoubtedly, the writer, who was supposedly a commoner, achieved a certain degree of success in France, which marked the beginning of a turning point.

At first, the speed of information dissemination and people's skepticism may have been limited, but as time went on, one incredible but not false message after another flowed into Russia, first causing a huge reaction in Russian cultural circles, and then spreading upwards layer by layer.

Now, the news has finally reached the Romanov family, but to be honest, Tsar Nicholas I and Alexander were no less shocked and astonished than any other Russian.

Even for them, this seemed to be a first.
After confirming that the information was accurate, both Alexander and his father Nicholas I had undoubtedly been learning, seeing, and thinking about things through various channels, and had begun to consider how to deal with the commoner writer who had single-handedly rushed into Paris.

As young Alexander pondered these matters, he unknowingly arrived at his destination.

After he knocked on the door, a familiar, authoritative voice with an inexplicable sense of oppression quickly rang out. However, this voice was not as cold and hard as usual; in fact, the owner of this voice seemed to be in a very good mood at this moment.

When Alexander walked in, his father's face, which at first glance appeared stern, brutish, and devoid of any warmth, came into view, along with some newspapers and magazines spread out on his father's desk.

After a brief silence, Nicholas I, who was not young, suddenly pointed to the newspaper on the table and said, "Although there are still many unpleasant things, this is the first time I have seen such news in a Parisian newspaper."

Fluent in over a dozen languages? Music that astonished Chopin? Poetry that was recited repeatedly and theatrical performances that swept through Paris? When did Russia produce such a literary figure?

These words sounded mostly pleasant, but almost the next second, Nicholas I's voice suddenly turned much colder: "Then what are his stance and inclinations? Why doesn't he speak for Russia and his emperor? Why doesn't he use his influence to publicly oppose that rogue Kustin, and why doesn't he make that rogue pay the price?"

If Mikhail could hear these words, he would only say: "You should be grateful I didn't criticize you."
At this moment, despite uttering a series of rhetorical questions, Nicholas I seemed uninterested in getting answers from others. He quickly concluded to himself: "True influence is influence that can be used in the right place. Otherwise, what use is such a peculiar writer to us? What should we do if he makes some inappropriate remarks in Europe one day?"

So-called poets and writers often do this kind of thing.

After saying this, Nicholas I seemed to think for a while, and then said in a tone that was slightly contemptuous and had some other meaning: "Yes, he is a commoner, but considering some things, it is best to have some understanding of him before making any other arrangements."

Someone has already reported to me that General Danilevsky seems to have a good relationship with him. Alexander, I'll leave this matter to you for now. It would be best to place him in a suitable position and let him do the right things.”

Although the issue was somewhat thorny, Alexander, who presented himself as submissive and indifferent to Nicholas I during this period, eventually nodded in agreement.

After Alexander, whose mind was full of thoughts, talked with his father for a while, he left to do his own thing.

As for Nicholas I, he couldn't help but glance at the newspaper on the table, and as he read it, he undoubtedly thought of some of the seemingly meaningful works of this commoner writer.

Under normal circumstances, Nicholas I would have already ordered these articles to be removed. However, considering the commotion they had caused in Paris, Nicholas I decided to postpone the matter for a while longer.
(End of this chapter)