Nikolai Milyutin bowed slightly and replied: "The count has the persistence of the count, and I also have my position. Of course, everything is as your Majesty said, for the great Russia!"
Alexander II nodded patiently, not taking Nikolai Milyutin's words seriously at all. He was thinking more about how to open a breakthrough and test whether the other party could talk to Count Uvarov.
How about it.
He pretended to praise: "That's right! Everything is for the country. I believe that as long as you and the earl adhere to this point, there will be no conflicts that cannot be resolved... By the way, regarding issues related to reform, have you consulted the earl?
What’s your opinion?”
Nikolai Milyutin also breathed a sigh of relief, because Alexander II finally stopped going in circles and went straight to the topic, so he no longer had to bother to accompany him in circles.
He bowed again and replied: "Of course there is, to be honest, the count just talked to me about this topic this morning..."
Alexander II's heart suddenly rose to his throat, fearing that Nikolai Milyutin would say something next: We talked happily and reached a high degree of agreement on many issues.
He forced a smile and pretended to be calm and asked, "Oh? Really? What did you talk about?"
Nikolai Milyutin became calmer and calmer. He certainly couldn't say that he was just chatting. This was not the result he wanted. According to Dmitri, it was best to put some pressure on Alexander II.
He decided to give it a try: "We talked a lot about the key issues of reform."
As for what the key issue is, he will definitely not say.
Alexander II felt like a cat scratching his heart, what a scratch! He pretended not to care and asked: "Oh, it's good to talk more, it's best to solve the problem calmly, so what's the conclusion?"
"Yes, we all believe that reform is necessary," Nikolai Milyutin replied cautiously, "As for how to carry out reform, we can have a more in-depth discussion..."
Alexander II's heart skipped a beat again. This was what he was afraid of, and he thought to himself: Sure enough! Count Uvarov, an old bastard, is going to rebel and surrender to the enemy! What should we do?
He wanted to take action immediately to stop Count Uvarov's rebellion, but he still said calmly on the surface: "Okay! How about we discuss it openly at the next imperial meeting, and everyone can express their opinions..."
It seems that he is very enlightened and intends to promote the reform process, but only those who truly understand Russian officialdom and the actual situation in Russia know that this is completely harboring evil intentions!
Why do you say that?
The reason is very simple. It is not impossible to discuss major decisions involving reform, and it is necessary to brainstorm. However, it is best to conduct these discussions in private, where everyone can fully exchange opinions. When the negotiations are passed, the fewer people, the better.
What a mouthful!
The Imperial Council seems to be a very high-end occasion, but in fact it involves too many people, connections and forces. Take the conservatives as examples: Count Uvarov, Baryatinsky, Bobie
Donostsev, Chernyshov, old Adlerberg and others almost all have their own plans.
Almost everyone's interests are not completely consistent, and all kinds of details can make your scalp numb.
To put it simply, Baryatinsky and Pobedonostsev may not necessarily agree to the conditions that Count Uvarov can agree to, and Count Uvarov may not necessarily agree to the conditions that Baryatinsky agrees to.
promise.
If so many different opinions are allowed to appear in the final decision-making situation at the same time, there will only be one result, and that is, nothing can be discussed!
This is based on lessons learned from the past. During the reign of Alexander I, the serfdom system was reformed and a decent committee was established. But in the end, nothing was accomplished. The reason was that the interests of all parties were different and there was no agreement at all.
!
If reform is really necessary, the correct approach is for Alexander II to first put pressure on the conservatives headed by Count Uvarov and tell them that the time has come when they cannot do without reform and must reform.
Then, let them discuss it internally to see what interests they have.
Then make a careful identification to see which interest demands can be met and which ones cannot be agreed to, and coordinate them accordingly.
Similarly, Alexander II should also let the reformists hold an internal discussion meeting to discuss their interests and demands.
When the interest demands of the two factions are basically stable, representatives from the two factions will be sent to face-to-face negotiations, and Alexander II will mediate.
At this time, the final decision-making process can be carried out. It is absolutely not possible for the two factions to have head-on contact because they are all in the same pot from the beginning, with all kinds of voices, and various interests and demands are not unified.
If you do this, you definitely don’t really want to reform, but you really want to stir up trouble!
Alexander II really wanted to stir things up. He wished that the conflicts and differences between the two factions would be as big as possible. It would be best if they could not agree on anything, so that he, the tsar, could use both sides to consolidate his position.
Nikolai Milyutin was not aware of such sinister intentions before, but today, after he discovered some of Alexander II's true inner activities, he became vigilant.
So he did not follow the other party's lead, but replied: "Both the Earl and I believe that it is not appropriate to rush things yet. For the time being, we can communicate privately as representatives, which will be more efficient and make it easier to resolve conflicts..."
Alexander II was really nervous. Of course he didn't like to communicate in private. This meant that the reformers and conservatives could communicate without him as the czar. What if they reached an agreement?
Even if there is no agreement, Alexander II can't stand the feeling of being kept in the dark. If he can't grasp everything clearly, he will be restless!
"This is inappropriate!" He quickly interrupted, "Reform still requires everyone to brainstorm and express their opinions, and it is most taboo to work behind closed doors. It is better to discuss these issues openly at the Imperial Council!"
Nikolai Milyutin's heart suddenly rang with alarm, and he realized that Alexander II's true purpose was not to promote reform at all, but quite the opposite.
He bowed and replied: "Relevant issues are very sensitive. I think it is not appropriate to expand the discussion. Some information should be properly kept confidential, otherwise some people with ulterior motives will do everything possible to sabotage it. I think it is more appropriate to discuss it on a small scale first!"
Alexander II frowned. He felt that Nikolai Milyutin today was a little different from usual. Normally, this guy would not dare to refuse his kindness. Could it be that this guy really made an agreement with Count Uvarov?