St. Petersburg, the Winter Palace.
"Your Majesty, Prince Heinrich of Prussia and his wife have already arrived in St. Petersburg."
"Is that so?"
Hearing the report from the attendant, Tsar Nicholas II of the Russian Empire, who was standing by the window, looked towards the wall clock in the corner of the office.
The hour hand pointed at two o'clock in the afternoon.
"I thought they would arrive in the evening. Unexpectedly, they are earlier than expected. I really should go and greet them in person."
"Shall we prepare now?"
"No need. It's not good to make the servants busy at this time. Let's just wait."
The gentle words of Tsar Nicholas II made the attendant bow his head in agreement. Seeing this, Tsar Nicholas II turned around and continued to look out of the window.
Through the glass window, he saw his daughters, Olga and Tatiana, running and playing merrily in the garden of the Winter Palace. Looking at their lovely and endearing appearances, Tsar Nicholas II also thought of his other two daughters, Maria and Anastasia.
Those two children were still little babies who couldn't speak yet, but one day, they would also grow up and play in the garden together with their elder sisters.
Thinking of the arrival of that day, Tsar Nicholas II felt both anticipation and a bit of regret. Parents always wish their children could stay in childhood forever.
"Your Majesty, Minister of Finance Sergei Witte, Minister of Foreign Affairs Vladimir Lamsdorf, and Minister of War Alexei Kuropatkin request an audience with you."
However, good times are always fleeting.
The attendant's words made the smile that had just appeared on Tsar Nicholas II's face due to watching his daughters' smiling faces freeze instantly. He knew why these people had come to see him.
Although he wanted to send them back in his heart, considering the importance of the matter, he couldn't do that. Tsar Nicholas II reluctantly let out a sigh and granted them an audience.
"Your Majesty."
"Witte."
Soon, the door of the office was pushed open, and the three ministers led by Minister of Finance Sergei Witte entered and bowed to the Tsar.
Tsar Nicholas II accepted their greetings, but the words that Witte said next made his brows furrow.
"I heard that Prince Heinrich of Prussia and his wife have just arrived in St. Petersburg."
"The news travels fast. I just heard about it myself."
"Your Majesty, you should already have some understanding of the purpose of Prince Heinrich's visit to the Russian Empire, right?"
Tsar Nicholas II nodded with a troubled expression. Before Prince Heinrich and his wife, along with Hans, left Germany, a secret telegram from the Russian Embassy in Germany had roughly conveyed the intentions of the German government.
"It's about the'military cooperation', right?"
But as to what kind of military cooperation it was, not only was Tsar Nicholas II unclear, but even Witte didn't know. The Germans hadn't revealed more details. For the sake of secrecy, they only said that they would convey it personally through the mouth of Prince Heinrich.
What kind of important matter could it be that made the always arrogant Germans so cautious? Tsar Nicholas II was just curious, but the three ministers in front of him were obviously much more serious than he was.
"Your Majesty, you know that it's unprecedented for the German Empire to act in this way."
"Indeed. They must have other schemes."
"The military has also raised many concerns."
Witte, Lamsdorf, and Kuropatkin spoke one after another, expressing their vigilance towards the sudden actions of Germany.
"It's probably William's capriciousness again. This kind of thing isn't new."
However, Tsar Nicholas II's attitude seemed rather indifferent. He was no stranger to the capriciousness of his relative, Wilhelm II.
"But Your Majesty, even so, this timing is still worrying."
"Timing?"
Witte nodded and replied, "Yes. Your Majesty, as you know, Britain has just officially formed an alliance with Japan. This timing is too coincidental."
"Oh, the Anglo-Japanese Alliance."
Tsar Nicholas II subconsciously touched the scar left by his injury in Japan, and his face darkened. Of course, he knew that the purpose of this alliance was precisely aimed at Russia.
"But what does this have to do with Heinrich's visit?"
To be honest, he didn't think there was any need to make such a fuss. This wasn't the first time that Britain had done such things in order to contain Russia. The Anglo-Japanese Alliance was just Britain's usual practice.
But obviously, the ministers' thoughts were different from those of the Tsar.
"Your Majesty, the German Empire's choice to make such a request to us at the moment when the Anglo-Japanese Alliance was established is by no means a coincidence."
"By no means a coincidence?"
"Yes."
Witte nodded in reply.
"But the victim of the Anglo-Japanese Alliance is our Russian Empire, and it has nothing to do with the German Empire, doesn't it?"
Of course, Wilhelm II might be angry about this. After all, his hatred for the yellow race, especially his hostility towards Japan, was well-known in Europe.
"But Your Majesty, in diplomacy, there is never anything absolute."
"Hmm... But I still have no clue."
Tsar Nicholas II said, "Anyway, let's listen to what Heinrich has to say before making a conclusion."
"That's true, but..."
"Let's discuss these boring matters later. Please leave now."
Tsar Nicholas II issued an order to dismiss Witte and the others, and turned his back to them. He really didn't want to be disturbed by these troublesome matters anymore.
...
"Whew — I didn't expect that I would miss stepping on the land so much."
Finally getting rid of that terrifying life on the ship, Hans set foot on the land he had longed for so much again and murmured to himself.
Then, he took a few deep breaths and slowly raised his head.
St. Petersburg.
This is a place that has witnessed the glorious deeds of Peter the Great and Empress Catherine the Great, and it is also the cradle of the revolution that will dye half of the world red in the future.
"Russia is always so cold whenever I come here, and there is always snow all over the ground whenever I come."
"Your Highness the Princess."
At this moment, Princess Irene, the wife of Prince Heinrich who accompanied this trip to Russia, walked up to Hans and said.
Although she was not an unparalleled beauty, she had a cheerful and kind personality, making people feel very amiable.
No wonder she had such a deep affection for Prince Heinrich.
Just as Hans and Princess Irene were admiring the scenery of this historic city together, a group of neatly dressed men walked towards them.
Prince Heinrich said in a low voice:
"It seems that Nicky has sent someone to welcome us."
Sure enough, when those men saw Prince Heinrich and Princess Irene, they immediately bowed respectfully and said:
"Your Highness the Prince, Your Highness the Princess, by the order of His Majesty Tsar Nicholas II, we have come to welcome you two to the Winter Palace. The carriage is already prepared. Please follow us."
"Alright."
"However... Is this young man of the yellow race also one of Your Highness the Prince's entourage...?"
Those men asked cautiously with puzzled looks in their eyes.
This kind of reaction was a fresh feeling that hadn't been seen for a long time.
It seemed that Hans' name wasn't widely known in Russia yet.
Hans was just about to open his mouth to explain, but Prince Heinrich spoke first:
"Ah, this is Baron Hans von Cho, a child adopted by the royal family. I brought him to Russia this time to let him gain some experience and serve as an attendant by the way."
"Oh, I see."
Although that man nodded as if he understood, the expression on his face still showed some doubt.
Anyway, the three of them got into the carriage and set off towards the Winter Palace where Tsar Nicholas II was.
The journey from the port to the Winter Palace was quite long and boring.
"Hans, do you see that building?"
Perhaps to pass the boring time, Prince Heinrich pointed at the building outside the window and said:
"That's the Mariinsky Theatre. The most historic Mariinsky Ballet in the Russian Empire is based there."
"I see."
"Further ahead are the Kazan Cathedral and the Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood. That's where Uncle Alexander was assassinated. It's really quite sad."
He was probably referring to Alexander II.
As the child of Princess Frederick, the sister of Wilhelm I, he was the uncle of Prince Heinrich and Wilhelm II.
"The bloodlines of European royal families are really complicated and headache-inducing."
What's more, the phenomenon of close relative marriages within the royal family made the relationships even more intricate.
For example, Prince Heinrich and Princess Irene in front of him were cousins.
Prince Heinrich's mother was the eldest daughter of Queen Victoria, and Princess Irene's mother was the second daughter of Queen Victoria.
No wonder Queen Victoria was known as the "Grandmother of Europe".
Squeak —!
"Hmm?"
Just as they were chatting and moving forward, the carriage suddenly stopped.
Obviously, they hadn't reached the Winter Palace yet.
"What's going on?"
"Sorry, Your Highness the Prince. The road ahead is blocked..."
"The road is blocked?"
The coachman seemed a bit flustered, and they looked at each other with blank expressions.
"If the road is blocked, we can just take a detour. Why do we have to stop?"
Hans suddenly felt that something was wrong.
However, his doubts were soon answered by the familiar singing that reached his ears.
"Arise, ye prisoners of starvation! Arise, ye wretched of the earth!"
Although the lyrics were in Russian, the melody was all too familiar.
"This song is..."
"The Marseillaise."
Although he couldn't understand Russian, how could he not recognize the melody of the French national anthem, "The Marseillaise"?
However, in the Russian Empire at this time, "The Marseillaise" carried another meaning.
"It's the workers."
The "Marseillaise" of the laborers.
Before the popularization of "The Internationale", this song had been the most widely sung song among the Russian people, full of dissatisfaction with the oppression of the Tsar and the nobles.
Hans opened the window and looked outside the carriage.
He saw the workers, dressed in work clothes, gathered on the street, angrily singing the "Marseillaise" of the laborers in front of the road blocked by the army.
"It seems that the workers are holding a demonstration or a strike."
"Sigh, what a hassle."
Prince Heinrich showed a pained expression.
At this moment, the Russian official they had met earlier at the port came running over, out of breath.
"I'm very sorry, Your Highness the Prince, Your Highness the Princess. There's been some unrest ahead..."
"I see. It's a demonstration, right?"
In the face of Prince Heinrich's question, the official was sweating profusely and nodded repeatedly.
For him, such a scene was nothing short of a great humiliation—after all, this was a farce taking place in front of foreign royalty.
"It's better to take a detour quickly."
Prince Heinrich said.
Hans also thought that it wasn't a wise choice to stay here any longer.
However, the Russian official wiped the sweat from his face with a handkerchief and calmly said:
"Please rest assured. The unrest will be quelled soon."
"Hmm? What do you mean by that..."
A sharp whistle suddenly rang out all around, interrupting Prince Heinrich's words.
Then, Hans heard the vibration sound coming from the ground.
"It's... the Cossacks."
The Cossack cavalry, the loyal sword of the Tsar, and also the nightmare of the Russian workers.
Their deployment meant that the Russian imperial government had decided to suppress this unrest by force.
"Crush them all!"
"Ah—!"
Outside the carriage, there were the roars of the soldiers and the screams of the demonstrators.
Prince Heinrich took the hand of Princess Irene, who had turned pale with fright, and glared angrily at the official.
His expression seemed to say, "Do you really have to do this in such a situation?"
However, due to the importance of this visit to Russia, he didn't act on his anger.
And the official obviously had nothing to say. He could only keep coughing dryly to hide his embarrassment.
A few minutes later, with all the shouting dying down completely, the carriage started moving again.
Hans looked out of the window once more.
The street was littered with items abandoned by the demonstrators. There were patches of blood all over the ground, and some of the demonstrators were being escorted away by the Cossack cavalry.
"Sigh... I suddenly miss Germany very much."
Prince Heinrich sighed.
Hans nodded silently in agreement.
He had a feeling that this visit was probably not going to go smoothly.