Chapter 152 Incompetent (Part 1)

How else can it be said that the emperor's mind is the most difficult to guess? Maybe in the past or usually, Nicholas I was very fond of Menshikov's flattery. What a person with a strong vanity like him likes most is the feeling that everything is under control. He is naturally overjoyed that the courtiers can give him a feeling of obedience.

But the situation is different now. What Nicholas I wants is not for Menshikov to be obedient, but for Menshikov to help him get things done as quickly as possible. What he needs most at this time is Menshikov's ability to handle affairs, not other insignificant things.

Yes, for Nicholas I, flattery and other things can be filmed at any time, but the ability to handle affairs at critical moments is even more critical. He did need a bunch of flattering sycophants, but it would be ideal if they could get things done the way he wanted them.

It is a pity that Menshikov misunderstood the spirit of Nicholas I, or he did not pay special attention to the tasks assigned by Nicholas I. Some old and stupid, he thought that being a special envoy this time was just going through the motions, to convey the will of Nicholas I, and there were not many opportunities for him to exert his subjective initiative and creatively solve problems.

In the officialdom, as the saying goes, it is good to do more, make more mistakes, do less, make less mistakes, and do nothing. Menshikov really understands this truth very well. His way of being an official is to never do superfluous things, and he will fight wherever the emperor points.

It's just that going to London or Istanbul this time is quite different from the old eunuch's previous career. This time the work is not the kind of work that can be completed step by step. This work actually requires flexible diplomatic means and keen observation and judgment. , but also need to assess the situation and decision-making ability.

Take a look at these abilities, which ones can Menshikov satisfy?

I'm afraid he can't satisfy all of them. The only reason why he was entrusted with important tasks is that he is old enough and trusted by Nicholas I. He has nothing else.

To put it bluntly, this trip is really untrustworthy. And Count Rostovtsev recommended Menshikov because he knew that he did not have those abilities. If he really found someone who fit everything to be a special envoy, wouldn't it be a waste of work if he really got things done?

As for Uvarov, he does have the wisdom and means no less than Count Rostovtsev. But the problem is that he has a problem with his ass. He never chooses people from the perspective of work ability.

In short, if you belong to one party with him, he recommends it. If he doesn't belong to the same party, even if he is the national scholar Wushuang, he can't speak a good word.

Unfortunately, there are too few talents within the conservative faction. Most of them are Menshikov and his ilk, who are in high positions only because of their loyalty and friendship to Nicholas I.

So no matter how good-looking Uvarov is, who can choose a tall man among a group of short men?

A short man like Menshikov has never encountered any real major events. Once a critical event suddenly befalls him, his incompetence will be fully revealed.

For example, he just ordered his secretary to book a boat ticket to Istanbul, and before the boat sailed, he received a breaking news-the Black Sea Fleet had friction with the Turkish Navy.

"What's the situation? Didn't the Black Sea Fleet say they were only doing some exercises? Why did they exchange fire with the Turkish fleet?"

Menshikov was caught off guard by this news, because when he left St. Petersburg, Nicholas I only told him that the Black Sea Fleet might take some exercises to continue to put pressure on Turkey. But Nicholas I didn't tell him that the exercise would become real? OK?

But this doesn't actually make Menshikov feel that it is so difficult. If it is normal, even if the Black Sea Fleet really fights with Turkey, he will not feel that the sky is falling. The main reason why he felt embarrassed came from the British Foreign Office, which directly sent a note to him as a special envoy and asked him why the Black Sea Fleet suddenly used force. The British side needed an explanation!

After all, Menshikov was still telling the British that Russia had no intention of unilaterally changing the regional situation, but just wanted to seek justice for the Bulgarian Orthodox Christians, and let the British understand that they did this to protect the legal rights of Christians in Turkey.

All in all, this set of nonsense was told by Nicholas I to Menshikov, and he also relayed it verbatim to the British Foreign Office. It's just that the British obviously don't believe it.

"What is going on with this operation? Is there any relevant news from China to tell me?"

No one can answer Menshikov's question, because even wired telegraphs are not popular these days, and diplomatic information is completely delivered by mail, and St. Petersburg is thousands of miles away from London, and Sevastopol is even more so from St. Petersburg. Yao, it really takes time for these key messages to be delivered.

This is quite unfriendly to Menshikov, because the British can receive the news at the first time because of their advanced technology, especially the powerful navy, but it will take time for Nicholas I to receive the news, and then convey it It takes more time for Menshikov, and it is normal to dawdle on the road for a month.

It's just that Menshikov obviously doesn't have a month to wait for news, and he needs to be proactive at this time. Generally, normal diplomatic envoys will not wait to die in this situation, but will take the initiative to inquire for information on their own.

The method is nothing more than to use his own network to collect information. If Menshikov has a good relationship with the British, he can go directly to the British friends to inquire about the news, look at the internal documents of the British Foreign Office, and then make a general judgment , and then adopt corresponding strategies to respond to this event.

It is a pity that Menshikov is not a regular diplomat. He has not done much diplomacy, so he has no friends in the UK. Obviously, he cannot get inside information from the British.

But this is not a fatal problem. As the saying goes, if the east side is not bright and the west side is bright, the relationship with the British will not work, and the relationship with the French, Austrians, and Prussians can also be used!

As the saying goes, as long as there are many friends, there will naturally be no shortage of ways. Under normal circumstances, when a diplomat encounters this kind of thing, he will not hang himself from a tree. He must ask for information from multiple sources. It is inevitable to ask more.

Menshikov thought so and did so, so he contacted the Austrians and Prussians immediately, hoping that these two allies could help find out some information...