Chapter 157 Unexpected Result

The Earl of Aberdeen's actions this time were regarded as unfavorable. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of his country felt that his prime minister was inconsistent with his words and deeds, and he was too timid and cowardly. But Menshikov and Baron Brunov thought that he didn't mean anything, and he was simply a liar.

Even the British people don't like him as a prime minister. They think he is too lenient to foreigners and harsh on his own people. He is an out-and-out jerk.

You see, this is the end of indecision. The Earl of Aberdeen’s tossing, not only made his supporters less and less, but also gave the Russians a very bad impression—— People are unreliable, talking like farting.

Anyway, Menshikov didn't believe him very much. In his report to Nicholas I, he said: "...the Earl of Aberdeen has inconsistent words and deeds, and he is not a gentleman. This prime minister has no sincerity at all, and personally I think the focus of future diplomatic work should be on the British royal family, not on Whitehall..."

I have to say that Menshikov's suggestion is terrible, because according to the British Constitution, it is the prime minister and the cabinet who can decide the state affairs of the UK, and the royal family is just a rubber stamp. And because of his distrust of the Earl of Aberdeen, he even suggested that Nicholas I do more work for the British royal family instead of maintaining communication with the British cabinet. This is simply obvious that there is a broad road and a secluded path instead of going sideways. Isn't this nonsense!

However, Nicholas I believed in Menshikov's evil, thinking that the old eunuch would not deceive him, and he also thought that the king should be the master of state affairs, even the prime minister is just a senior worker of the king Boys and servants.

So Nicholas I lost all trust in the Earl of Aberdeen, and wrote to Queen Victoria and Prince Albert on his own, in an attempt to persuade Britain by taking a high-level route.

This is not the worst. What's worse is that because of his distrust of the Earl of Aberdeen, Nicholas I ignored the diplomatic signals sent by the Earl. Let's see what kind of attitude you have.

Because of Russia's refusal to communicate, since Menshikov left London, the direct communication between Britain and Russia in the diplomatic field has almost been interrupted, that is, a little formal communication has been maintained, which can only be said to be better than nothing.

As for the friction between the Black Sea Fleet and the Turkish Navy, this event that caused unprecedented diplomatic tension between the two countries was deliberately forgotten by both sides. On the British side, it was because of the Earl of Aberdeen's sudden strong suppression that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had to stop. Without the help of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, a group of ordinary people or even a few newspapers would naturally not be able to accomplish much.

It's just that although the turmoil was calmed down, the impact was far-reaching. The first is the distrust of the Earl of Aberdeen. Whether it is the people, the cabinet or Whitehall, there are a large number of anti-Russian parties who are very dissatisfied with this result.

I feel that he is too useless to support the sky of the British Empire.

Even a group of neutral centrists gradually began to abandon the Earl of Aberdeen and move closer to Lord Palmerston, which directly led to the change of ownership of the British Foreign Secretary a few months later, and Palmerston came out again served as foreign minister.

As we all know, Palmerston has always been a hardliner towards Russia. Naturally, it is impossible for him to be friendly to Russia as the foreign minister, and he must make trouble.

On the Russian side, although Menshikov also complained about the reckless actions of the Black Sea Fleet in the report, he believed that Kornilov was too reckless and almost ruined the event. It's just that this report did not attract Nicholas I's attention. On the one hand, Menshikov's complaints were not particularly strong, and on the other hand, Nicholas I felt that Kornilov had done a real job. not bad.

Why do you say that?

In Nicholas I's view, whether he sent Menshikov to London or Kornilov's provocative actions actually made him understand the reality of Britain. From Menshikov's report, he can see that the British side is still very restrained. If the British are really ready to turn their faces, how can they be so restrained?

From this point of view, Kornilov's actions are a stroke of genius. If he does not do this, he will not be able to find out the bottom line of Britain!

From this, Nicholas I determined that Britain was unlikely to turn against him because of Turkey, so Kornilov did so beautifully! Even Nicholas I felt that this man was stronger than Menshikov, because what Menshikov did in London, he had already seen it clearly in the report of Baron Brunov and the third spies in London-this old man The eunuch's test of the British bottom line is not very effective!

To be honest, Nicholas I was a little disappointed with Menshikov, because both Count Rostovtsev and Count Uvarov believed that the old eunuch was a suitable test candidate, and he himself thought that the old eunuch should not be too bad , but when he really does it, why is it so unsatisfactory?

If it wasn't for Kornilov's divine assist to help Menshikov complete the task, Nicholas I would have the heart to call this old guy back and replace him with someone else.

"Tell Menshikov to be more active and active in doing things, don't be afraid, do it boldly, don't be afraid!"

In the end, Nicholas I decided to trust Menshikov again. Maybe he will be enlightened when he arrives in Istanbul? Even so, he still sent someone to send the above sentence to Menshikov, reminding the old eunuch to let it go.

And this will kill you. Menshikov was originally a very dull person. His poor performance in London was not due to his lack of subjective initiative, but because he mechanically carried out the instructions of Nicholas I. He did whatever Nicholas I ordered him to do. , I didn't use my brain at all.

He was very mechanical at first, and then Nicholas I told him to let it go, so he naturally carried out Nicholas I's orders even more uncompromisingly. Nicholas I ordered him to exert extreme pressure before, so it is even more impossible for him to hold back now!

That is to say, under a series of mistakes, Menshikov, a tough old eunuch, led Russia directly to the point of no return. There is no way out, and the fuse of the war is ignited.

If Li Xiao knew that what he had done with Kornilov before would make things out of hand and further aggravate the situation, then he would definitely be dumbfounded. Because his original intention was really not like this, all this can only be blamed on Menshikov, an old guy who is too weird...