Marquis Karl Novikov was escorted by the Chinese Imperial Army.
He was somewhat looking forward to entering the Great China Empire's army and observing its performance.
When they arrived at Tumu Mansion, they were not imprisoned in the army, but were taken to an inn and kept under guard.
Marquis Karl Novikov listened to the officer's explanation through an interpreter.
They have to ask Cai Gong Wu Jie, the commander-in-chief of the northwest region, for instructions. After receiving the order, they will make further arrangements for the Russian mission.
When Earl George Johnson learned the news, he was very depressed.
I thought I could visit the defense line of Tumufu of the Dahua Empire.
They were actually put under house arrest in the inn, which was expected by everyone.
In the inn, they ate the delicacies provided by the Great China Empire to relieve their fatigue during the journey.
Count Andrei von Dillen looked at Marquis Karl Novikov and asked: "Karl, if the Great China Empire keeps imprisoning us, have the frontline troops made corresponding arrangements?
Don’t we need to cooperate with the frontline troops in our actions?”
Marquis Karl Novikov said with a smile: "I am the Tsar's special envoy, and I am only responsible for negotiating with the Great China Empire.
At our rate, it's probably post-war negotiations.
Regardless of whether the empire wins or loses, I will be the one to negotiate with the Great China Empire.
When will this war be fought? How will it be fought?
Leave everything to the commander-in-chief of the army, Margrave Oleg Ivanov."
Marquis Karl Novikov certainly knew the approximate time when the war would begin, which would be in March or April of this year.
The snow in Siberia has melted, and aid supplies from England and France can be transported smoothly from Europe to Asia.
After the road was opened, the empire could also dispatch troops more easily.
The materials and personnel currently accumulated by the frontline army are only enough to fight a few low-intensity wars.
This is the most important secret of the Russian army, and he will never reveal it.
Even in the Russian military camp, this matter cannot be mentioned, let alone in the hinterland of the Great China Empire.
Count Andrei von Dillen and Count George Johnson heard Margrave Karl Novikov say this.
They knew the Russians were ready.
It took them more than a year to travel from Moscow, Russia, to Tumu Mansion in the Great China Empire.
It is expected that it will take a year to rush from Tumufu to the capital of the Dahua Empire.
It would also take about a year to travel quickly between Russia and China.
The Russian commander certainly cannot wait for such a long time.
Nothing unexpected happened to them this time, they must have been talking while fighting.
This situation was not uncommon in Europe during the Thirty Years' War.
…………………………
Cai Gong Wu Jie was quite surprised when he heard the report from his subordinates.
Unexpectedly, the Russian mission would come to the Great China Empire so early.
"Some time ago, Zhang Wansi's cavalry division fought very well, destroying more than 3,000 Russian cavalry with very low casualties.
Could it be that Russia sensed its lack of strength and wanted to sue for peace with the empire?"
Cai Gong Wu Jie immediately discussed the matter with others.
Qu Tian, deputy chief of general staff of the Metropolitan Governor's Office, heard Cai Gong Wu Jie say this.
He smiled and said: "This is impossible, the Russian army does not have telegraph technology, they still use fast horse communication.
We just received the telegram after Zhang Wansi's victory.
It was impossible for the Russian mission to get the news, not to mention the speed of the Russian mission. This local war had not yet started before they set off.
I think this should be a normal mission sent by Russia.
We should report this matter to His Majesty the Emperor."
Cai Gong Wu Jie nodded and discussed: "Russian envoy, should we meet with him?"
Qu Tian objected with a solemn expression: "I don't think there is a need to meet. Our Metropolitan Governor only needs to figure out how to win the war.
Try not to interfere in matters that have nothing to do with war."
Qu Tian strongly opposed meeting the mission. As frontline generals, they contacted the imperial mission.
Doing so will not bring any profit, but will leave something that can be criticized by others.
How stupid would you be to do something like this that doesn't bring any profit but brings a lot of trouble?
When Cai Gong Wu Jie heard Qu Tian's words, he immediately reacted.
He is far away from the center, has become accustomed to acting arbitrarily in the northwest region, and has lost some due vigilance.
"Chief of Staff Qu, then this matter is settled.
I will immediately send a message to His Majesty to ask for His Majesty's advice.
Within two or three days, your Majesty's telegram will be received and will be handed over to a dedicated person."
Cai Gong Wu Jie and Chief of Staff Qu Tian jointly reported this matter.
One day later, they received a call back from Emperor Su He.
The Northwest Governor's Office sent people to escort the mission to Yili, and Yang Zhengfeng, the governor of Yili, was responsible for delivering the mission to the capital.
After Cai Gong Wu Jie accepted the order, he immediately arranged the matter.
In the inn, Marquis Karl Novikov was waiting anxiously.
"Andre, officials of the Great China Empire, why do you ignore us?
The local officials did not send anyone to contact us and confined us in this house, preventing us from moving freely."
Count Andre von Dillen holds the cheese of the Great China Empire in his hands.
The cheese here has a very different taste from the cheese in France.
Hearing what Marquis Karl Novikov said, he said worriedly: "I received a mission from the Prime Minister and bought several translated history books of the Great China Empire.
This place receives foreign envoys and needs to report to the emperor of the Great China Empire.
If the Great China Empire followed this process, it would take at least more than a year for news to come and go.
What Karl said yesterday is likely to come true. Only after this war is over can we hope to meet the emperor of the Great China Empire."
Earl George Johnson agreed: "I think it's very likely.
We in England were the first to communicate with the Great China Empire and have a better understanding of the situation in the Great China Empire.
They regarded themselves as beings of the Celestial Kingdom, and when communicating with these Chinese people, they seemed to be refined and easy-going.
There is a kind of aloof arrogance in their bones.
Especially the officials of the Great China Empire, because we are sea barbarians.
Only when Russia shatters the pride of the Chinese people on the battlefield will they face the mission squarely."
Karl Novikov and the three of them were discussing this matter while eating.
The subordinate quickly knocked on the door and entered the room, reporting with surprise: "Your Majesty, the Chinese have informed us that we can set off for the capital of the Great China Empire, and the Chinese army is responsible for escorting us."
When Marquis Karl Novikov heard the news, he was eating meat and choked.
After drinking a large glass of wine, he quickly asked: "Are you sure this is true?"
"My Lord Marquis, the translator has repeatedly confirmed that this matter is true and correct.
The translator communicated with the people sent by China to make sure we can leave at any time."
Margrave Karl Novikov makes eye contact with Count Andrei von Dillen and Count George Johnson.
He immediately ordered: "Inform everyone in the mission and we will set off immediately.
Time is urgent and we cannot delay even a quarter of an hour."
After Margrave Karl Novikov issued the order, the mission immediately became busy.
They quickly packed up and headed to Yili Mansion under the escort of Cai Gong and Wu Jie's security regiment.
Marquis Karl Novikov sat in a wider four-wheeled carriage and looked at the scene passing quickly outside the glass window.
The Chinese army disliked the slow speed of their carriages and recommended that they buy carriages produced by China.
Marquis Karl Novikov brought not much gold and silver on this mission, but the amount converted into silver coins amounted to hundreds of thousands of taels.
Buying a few carriages would be more than enough.
What's more, their carriage, after traveling a long distance from Kuznetsk to Tumu, was also relatively worn out.
The carriages produced in China are indeed much faster.
They were speeding along the concrete road without any bumps.
Marquis Karl Novikov sent someone to find out secretly. He only heard the three key words bearing, rubber tire and spring, but he didn't know what they meant.
Earl George Johnson looked through the window and saw a convoy of hundreds of loaded carriages approaching from the other side.
The carriage had no carriage, just a large flatbed. The supplies on the carriage were covered with silk cloth, so it was impossible to see what was inside.
He lamented: "The Dahua Empire is so rich that it can form such a huge convoy to transport supplies to the front line.
They actually used precious cement to pave such a long road just to make it easier to transport goods."
The Great China Empire has close exchanges with the West, and Westerners can easily obtain dirty things like cement formulas.
However, Western cement is an extremely expensive luxury product and can only be used in military fortresses or wealthy people's residences.
The reason is that the formula is monopolized and cement grinding is still very laborious. Horse-drawn stone mills are generally used for grinding.
George Johnson heard that in the Great China Empire, there was something called a steam engine, which could drive a huge machine to grind cement quickly.
When Marquis Karl Novikov heard Count George Johnson's words, his expression changed slightly.
His perspective could only observe things outside the carriage, but just seeing this little thing made him feel shocked.
He discovered that the most critical point was that the Great China Empire was too wealthy.
If the Dahua Empire has money, this war will continue with energy.
If the Russian army is defeated, it will ruin the results of nearly a century of expansion in the Far East.
Marquis Karl Novikov listened to Count George Johnson and Count Andrei von Dillon's continuous exclamations, but he fell silent.
The convoy soon arrived at Yili Mansion, where Governor Yang Zhengfeng received the delegation in person.
Assed Maimaiti, an official who can speak Russian, was selected by the Yili Prefecture to accompany the mission.
Wang Jianshuo, the head of Ili Xuanwu Guard, personally led the team to be responsible for the security of the mission.
Their main task is to monitor the mission, understand the mission's intelligence, and instigate rebellion against some of the mission's attendants.
Assad Mamet got into the carriage of Marquis Karl Novikov.
He first introduced himself: "My name is Assaid Maimaiti, the seventh-rank official in charge of commerce in Ili Prefecture.
Let me serve as your guide and accompany you on your tour of the great rivers and mountains of the empire.
The mission can also tell me some of its demands and I will give them to my superiors."
Assad Maimaiti cherishes this opportunity.
There are millions of Han Chinese in Ili Prefecture, but there is not a single Han Chinese who can speak Russian.
Because before, the number of Han people in this area was less than 10,000, and most of them were captured slaves.
The overland Silk Road was cut off for hundreds of years. Han Chinese caravans mostly went to Mongolia and no longer went to areas such as the Ottoman Turkish Empire and Russia.
As a businessman from the Eastern Chagatai Khanate, he went to Russia to do business, understood the situation in Russia, and could speak fluent Russian.
Assad Maimaiti performed best among the foreign officials and was recognized by his superiors.
As a non-Han official, he would also lower the vigilance of the Russian mission, so he was chosen to perform this task.
Marquis Karl Novikov's eyes flashed with joy after hearing Assad Maimaiti introduce himself.
He immediately took out a gold ingot, put it in the hands of Assad Maimaiti, and said politely: "We have come a long way, and we hope that Mr. Assad Maimaiti will give us some convenience."
Marquis Karl Novikov was testing Assad Mamet, and he only needed to pay a small amount of gold.
If they can get important information, they will make a lot of money.
Assad Maimaiti had a smile on his face and kept the gold in his hands in the wide sleeves of his official uniform.
He had already anticipated this situation and had specifically consulted Governor Yang Zhengfeng for instructions on what to do to benefit him more.
When Count Andre von Dillen and Count George Johnson saw this situation, they looked at each other with smiles in their eyes.
Marquis Karl Novikov felt that the gold he gave had played its due role.
Asad Maimaiti, an official of the Great China Empire, would not ride in this carriage unless he came to notify him of something.
This way they have enough space to discuss what they discovered during the trip.
When the convoy was resting at night, Assad Maimaiti came to the tent where Karl Novikov was.
"Mr. Karl Novikov, tomorrow we will cross the provincial border and go to the richer Turpan.
After arriving in Turpan, we will soon reach the capital."
"Thank you Mr. Assad Maimaiti for the information."
Marquis Karl Novikov thanked him and gave him another gold ingot.
He didn't understand why he could reach the capital faster if he rushed to Turpan.
Margrave Karl Novikov had seen the map of the Great China Empire.
The distance from Turpan to Dahua Capital is not much closer than the distance from Moscow to Kuznetsk.
He did not have specific data. He only looked at the distance on the map and excluding the time affected by the road. It should be about the same time to walk the two roads.
They set out the next day and saw the conditions on both sides of the road.
The place is obviously much more popular, with markets and residential settlements lining both sides of the road.
When the convoy crossed a small mountain range, they saw an engineering team blasting open the mountain. I wonder what they were doing?
In the evening, the motorcade arrived at a place called Ulu.
Marquis Karl Novikov observed this city. This was the third large city that the envoy visited after Tumu and Ili.
They finally no longer had to rest in the wild, but came to the inn to enjoy the unique delicacies of the Dahua Empire.
Assad Maimaiti approached the mission again and asked the mission if they could accept an interview from a reporter from Yanhuang Daily.
He suggested that Marquis Karl Novikov accept an interview with reporters, which would be beneficial to the mission's next actions.
Margrave Karl Novikov felt that it was the gold he used that played a role.
On behalf of the Russian mission, he accepted an interview with a reporter from Yanhuang Daily.
Margrave Karl Novikov responded calmly to the reporter's questions.
Until a reporter asked, what did he think of the Russian Cossack cavalry's tragic defeat in Kazakhstan?
Marquis Karl Novikov stood up directly and shouted that it was impossible.
