Have you ever thought it was amazing? Have you ever thought that Count Rostovtsev turned out to be a rebellious Decembrist? Are you shocked? Don’t be surprised, there is something even more amazing to come!
While other Decembrists were severely punished, deprived of their titles, estates, and all honorary titles and were sent to hard labor in Siberia to repair the earth, this magical Count Rostovtsev remained unscathed.
The injured one stayed in St. Petersburg, the Winter Palace, and the side of Nicholas I, becoming His Majesty's confidant.
Amazing, right?
So how was this gorgeous transformation comparable to that of Sailor Moon achieved? Quite simply, on the eve of the Decembrist uprising, Count Rostovtsev personally went to meet with Nicholas I to warn the future
The emperor "is in danger."
Yes, it is said that this magical count made a whistleblower, which allowed him to win the trust of Nicholas I and escape the murder.
It seems that this count is despicable and a complete villain. Should he be cast aside? Should he be infamy for eternity?
Things were not that simple. Everything that happened in front of the Winter Palace that winter was very complicated. Many things and the images shown were not entirely consistent with the truth. Count Rostovtsev's actions were even more complicated and full of meaning.
First of all, the count did not betray his friends and tell the secret. In fact, he told his friends that he was going to warn Nicholas I. At that time, he said to his good friends who were also Decembrists openly:
"I am loyal to Russia and the Romanov family. It is foreseeable that our actions will put Grand Duke Nikolai Pavlovich (Nicholas I) in danger. I decided to go to him and ask him not to accept the throne.
."
Yes, Count Rostovtsev hoped to indirectly promote the success of the uprising by convincing Nicholas I not to accept the throne. And he did not tell the full story of the Decembrists' actions, but only told Nicholas I
: "It will be very dangerous for you to accept the throne!" And after the meeting, he returned to his friends and told them the entire meeting with Nicholas I.
If you look at it this way, the count is no longer a despicable informer, but more like an innocent child.
Of course, Count Rostovtsev was not naive. In fact, he had a deep knowledge of the city. The reason why he warned Nicholas I was not because he was naive. On the contrary, it was because he was very realistic and very prophetic. I am afraid that in the future
At that time, as a Decembrist who did not agree with the immediate launch of an armed uprising, he had realized that this uprising that was hastily organized and had unclear objectives would not succeed. Rather than perish together, it would be better to find an opportunity to remain useful.
Vaguely warning Nicholas I is undoubtedly a good idea. It does not affect the implementation of the uprising, and it also provides a way to protect yourself after the uprising fails. How can someone who can come up with such a clever method be a naive person? How can he be so sophisticated?
The result! It is also written in the history books that the Decembrist uprising can only be regarded as a farce. It was a mess and nothing was accomplished by sitting back and waiting for the opportunity to slip away. Instead, it exposed the immaturity of the Russian progressives and the ignorance of the soldiers of the lower serf class. This
It is obvious that the combination of the two cannot lead Russia to a new page. This shows that the count's prediction is very accurate!
Count Rostovtsev wisely jumped out of the whirlpool, conserved his strength, and lurked beside Nicholas I, silently waiting for new opportunities. Now, he felt that the time was gradually ripe.
"Count, do you really think that the current international situation will help our country carry out reform?"
In the carriage that was moving slowly, Nikolay Alexeevich Milyutin asked Count Rostovtsev without concealing his suspicion.
Count Rostovtsev looked at Xiaomi Liujing, who was more than ten years younger than him. The slightly immature face of this young man who was just 29 years old always reminded him of himself in 1825.
In the winter of that year, he also kept questioning his good friend and big brother Sergey Ivanovich Muravyov-Apostol with similar doubts.
The other party decided to revolt immediately, but instead asked to cancel the uprising plan. At that time, did Muravyov feel as confident as he does now?
Count Rostovtsev's thoughts flew far away in an instant, as if he had returned to the winter that he would never forget: Colonel Muravyov was being led to the gallows on the Peter and Paul Fortress Square on Rabbit Island, and the war hero's face looked...
He looked at the gallows and noose calmly without any fear. This made Nicholas I who was watching the execution very disappointed. The tyrant wanted to see the rebels scared to death or kneeling down to repent, which could serve as a deterrent.
effect.
But Muravyov was always so calm. He used his calmness to despise Nicholas I and the conservative Russian upper class. Nothing could make him change his ambitions, not even death.
Rostovtsev will never forget the horrific scene that followed. Muravyov was put in a black hood and noose. As the step stool under his feet fell with a clang, the iron-clad man suddenly fell to his death.
After falling, a shocking scene happened. The wooden beam to which the noose was attached could not bear the weight of the prisoners and broke with a click. The prisoners fell directly to the ground, broke their legs and screamed in pain.
This was not a trick deliberately played by Nicholas I, nor was it the fake execution that Dostoyevsky and his friends encountered later, but a concrete manifestation of the incompetence of decadent Russia. Muravyov was later used
What he said before the execution again was: "This bastard country can't plot conspiracies, can't judge, and can't even hang people!"
Nicholas I did not let go of the five Decembrist leaders headed by Muravyov, even though the suddenly broken beam was like God saying to save people under the knife, even though dignitaries kept interceding for the five people. But
Nicholas I insisted on carrying out another execution immediately, so Muravyov and others dragged their broken legs to the gallows again on the spot.
From that day on, Rostovtsev hated the new tsar. Even though Nicholas I gave him full trust and continuously promoted him, he could never forget the words before his elder brother Muravyov left.
The look in his eyes showed both contempt for the decadent autocracy and infinite longing for the future of the revolution. He was determined to carry forward Big Brother’s legacy and carry this revolution through to the end. For this purpose, he endured the humiliation and accumulated strength, and had been preparing for too long...