I'm playing whack-a-mole in Siberia

Chapter 74
  George's money was also earned by George's hard work as a duke——

If you say this, you might be asking for a beating.

Then change it to George’s money which Georgi earned through hard work selling wine.

This tastes just right.

Since it was so hard to make money, George would definitely not waste it. After spending so much money, he finally selected a group of excellent soldiers. If they were disbanded on the spot after winning the exercise, then George would no longer be George.

Even this competition, George is ready to continue next year.

In order to give Nikolai more opportunities to perform, George asked Nikolai to propose to the Tsar that the scale of the competition be expanded to include the entire Guards.

After knowing these situations, Milyugin's expression became even happier.

"Your performance is really beyond my expectation. If you don't dislike me as an old man, you can come to my house and have tea or something when you have time -" Milyugin took the initiative to invite George.

"Okay, just don't bother me." George didn't give Milyutin a chance to regret.

The era of Suvorov has passed, but George is still very interested in Milyutin, the reformer of Russia's modern military.

A piece of smokeless gunpowder made George fully realize how difficult it is to change the old stubbornness of these feudal remnants in Russia.

How did Milyutin promote military reforms back then?
  Milyutin had to face the more conservative generals and marshals. This group was more stubborn and more difficult to deal with than the civilian group.

The rhythm of the boxing match is faster, and the punches are more exciting. The crowd is in high spirits, and the applause and cheers are getting louder and louder.

Peter and Constantine, two brilliant minds, actually opened the market on the spot, which attracted many followers.

Little Nicholas smiled like a chrysanthemum.

Sergei's face was as dark as the bottom of a pot.

"If the future of the empire is left in the hands of these people, the future of the empire will be really worrying-" Milyutin looked at Peter and Konstantin with eyes that showed no emotion or anger, and his voice was so low that only George could hear it.

George didn't answer.

As long as George is here, these two guys will never get ahead.

Shame on the Guards!
  There is no time limit in the boxing match of the Guards. The fight will start as soon as two people come up. The match will not end until one person falls.

Trick from the 2nd company was two meters tall and weighed 180 kilograms. This guy was invincible. All his opponents could not last more than three minutes and successfully won the championship.

Nicholas asked Trick over on the spot to be his personal guard.

Little Nicholas was very happy and rewarded Trick with a pocket watch. This guy rose to the top in one step. After Nicholas ascended the throne, Trick would definitely become the attendant general.

George was also happy, but there was no private reward. He did not need to win over Nicholas's guards or Nicholas himself.

George did not attend the evening banquet. He sent Milyutin home and stayed at Milyutin's house for dinner.

The old man ate very little dinner, and George didn't take a few bites either. After eating, the two of them went to the study to talk by candlelight.

"How did you come up with the idea of ​​holding this competition?" Milyutin was curious about George. No one had ever done this before.

This--

George didn't even know how to answer.

The first modern Olympic Games was held in 1896, and Coubertin was still playing in the mud in Normandy.

"Throughout the winter, the soldiers of the General Regiment have been doing nothing, drinking, gambling, and fighting. How can this be possible? We should find something to do for them to keep them busy." Milyutin actually had tea here, and George took the initiative to make it Tea, those who move skillfully are like tea masters.

"The Guards emphasizes courage and loyalty, which is correct in itself, but if there is only courage and loyalty, the meaning of the Guards' existence is lost - the world is developing, technology is advancing, and Americans have begun to use it in the Civil War. For automatic weapons, we already have stable smokeless gunpowder, but we can't even make a bullet." George was also confused, could he really save the empire?

How is it possible—— George shook his head and smiled bitterly. Even if he had more knowledge from the future, he still had to have room to use it.

The conservatism of St. Petersburg suffocated George.

"You're only ten years old, why do you feel more desperate than an old man like me?" Milyugin didn't talk about technology with George, but about life with George.

"Then I should be happy -" George smiled bitterly, looking like a smaller version of Milyutin after many vicissitudes of life: "-No, I should be happy, I am Yurievsky Super Duke, yes The best friend of the future Tsar, I have four uncles to help me make money, I even have a fief - hahahaha!"

George's dry laughter sounded more uncomfortable to Milyutin than crying.

"Your fiefdom - I heard you requested it on your own initiative?" Although Milyugin has faded away from the center of power, he is still very well-informed.

This is probably the news that Ya San took the initiative to release.

After all, Vladivostok is not a good place in everyone’s eyes.

The income of other people's princely fiefdoms exceeds one million rubles a year.

It would be good if George's fiefdom did not lose money all year round.

"Am I qualified to be picky?" George's happy smile completely confused Milyugin.

Are you so happy about this?

Is there a gold mine beneath Vladivostok?
  No, no, no, it's impossible. If there is a gold mine, it won't be George's turn.

"Escape is not the way to solve problems." Milyutin could only interpret George's happiness as self-deprecation.

"No, you are wrong. The future of the empire lies in the Far East. I am extremely sure of this." George's face changed in a second, and his joy was really not fake.

"Why?" Milyutin didn't know much about the Far East. When he was Minister of War, all Russia's attention was in the direction of the Black Sea.

"Because I'm there!" George's answer made Milyutin frown a little.

This answer is too confident.

Those who are confident are a bit arrogant.

"Compared with St. Petersburg, the Far East is like a blank sheet of paper, where you can freely express yourself. Do you understand how I feel?" George's explanation made Milyutin relieved.

Yes, for a reformer, nothing is more important than freedom.

Milyutin has Ya Er's absolute trust, so Milyutin can implement his reforms.

Precisely because Milyutin had too much influence on the Russian military, Milyutin had to leave after Yasan ascended the throne.

Unfortunately, like most reformers in history, Milyutin also died in power.

"When I first became Minister of War, I was as confident as you. Later, I finally understood that personal efforts are too small compared to the empire, too small to be worth mentioning." Milyutin also cannot escape the limitations of the times. sex.

George couldn't answer this.

His inability to truly bring changes to the empire was ultimately due to his lack of personal ability. Suvorov had been dead for a hundred years, but his influence still lingered.

Milyukyin was ranked second in success and second in defeat.

In the Tenth Russo-Turkish War, the Russian side was actually commanded by Milyutin.

It was the Tsar who was nominally the commander-in-chief, and it was the Tsar who took away the honor that originally belonged to Milyutin.

(End of this chapter)