Struggle in Russia

Count Uvarov vomited blood. He didn't get any benefit from this round of confrontation. On the contrary, rumors and rumors about him were flying all over the sky.

The question is, when has he suffered such a loss, he has always been the only one who let others run and break his legs, and now he has been beaten, how can he bear this tone.

"I can't just let it go!" he said angrily. "This is not the first time. If I choose to swallow my voice, I'm afraid that **** will be more and more aggressive!"

The **** in his mouth naturally refers to Count Rostovtsev. He has fought against Count Rostovtsev several times in the past few months, but every time the result is that he is disheartened or sullen.

Now the new hatred and the old hatred are added together, but he is furious, and he has to say anything to make Count Rostovtsev look good.

"What's your reaction to the rumors I let you spread?"

Chernyshov was afraid that Count Uvarov would ask this, and he hesitantly replied: "That...then what...fortunately...a lot of people...there are a lot of discussions about this..."

Well, such nonsense can't be hidden from Count Uvarov, he snorted coldly: "To be honest, don't hesitate!"

Chernyshov suddenly replied with a bitter face: "Count, everyone is not very interested in whether Earl Rostovtsev has corrupted or taken bribes. Now the focus is on buying Alaska, and they are very interested in it!"

Count Uvarov's face was a bit ugly again, and this was what he was most afraid of hearing. He couldn't figure it out, how could there be a lot of fools rushing to it even though it was a loss-making business?

It was very simple that he couldn't figure it out, it was because of asymmetric information. The news that there was a gold mine in Alaska was not widely spread, and only a few noble circles who were close to Count Rostovtsev or Li Xiao knew about it.

However, there is never a shortage of smart people in this world. When bigwigs such as Duke Oldov, Duke Gorchakov's brother, and Duke Vorontsov showed extraordinary interest, anyone with a little brain could realize that this was abnormal.

These top titans may have extraordinary patriotism, but this kind of patriotism won't make them spend a lot of money to empty their homes, right?

Anyway, as long as you are a normal person, you will not be so reckless, so there must be a problem. As for any problems, you have to ask each other slowly.

It's just that not everyone can find the truth. The few clever ghosts who have inquired about the news of the gold mine have joined the patriotic action to buy Alaska for their own interests. On the one hand, they have done everything possible to block the news. , after all, there are only so many gold mines, and if one more person joins, one less point is earned, which is not worth it!

After three weeks of tossing and turning, the craze reached its peak when Nicholas I finally set the sale price for Alaska, allowing all the nobles in Russia to voluntarily buy it.

Count Rostovtsev and others immediately took action and bought 70% of Alaska's land in a joint venture at a price of 15 million rubles. Other nobles who followed the trend also bought nearly 25% of the land with nearly 5 million rubles, which means that Alaska was sold out in the blink of an eye.

At this point, it was too late for Count Uvarov to stop it. Although 20 million rubles is more than 10 million US dollars, this price is much more sincere than when the Chancellor of the Exchequer negotiated with the Americans, not to mention that it was sold to his own people. Alaska still belongs to Russia, and there is no infamy of betraying the country at all.

In this way, Nicholas I gained both face and rank, how could he be unhappy?

Of course, happy to be happy, Nicholas I also noticed another problem, that is, most of the people who actively snapped up Alaska were neutral or liberal aristocrats, while conservative aristocrats did not say that none of them paid for it, but the money they put out was really A drop in the bucket, completely inconsistent with their net worth.

Especially when Nicholas I noticed that Count Uvarov was so naked, you have to say that he has no opinions and ideas, is that possible?

So the question is, don't smart people like Count Uvarov realize that this is dangerous?

He's not going to make such a low-level mistake, right?

Count Uvarov was naturally aware of this, but his actions were too slow. He had planned to take out 100,000 rubles symbolically, meaning that if he bought a piece of land at once, he would be saved from bankruptcy.

But by the time he got to the Treasury Department to buy the land, Alaska was almost bought. The remaining 5% of the land is either full of permafrost near the Arctic Circle, or it is poor mountains and rivers that have nothing to do.

Although 100,000 rubles is not a lot to him, his money is not blown by the wind. Why should he spend a piece of worthless garbage?

And Count Uvarov still has a fluke. He feels that since Alaska is selling so well, Nicholas I must be ecstatic! At this time, he shouldn't care who actually paid for it, and he will forget it after the gust of wind.

It can only be said that Count Uvarov underestimated Count Rostovtsev too much. Nicholas I was indeed as Count Uvarov imagined. He was happy when he got the money. Who pays and who doesn't.

But the problem is that Nicholas I may forget, but Count Rostovtsev and his complicit brothers, Duke of Oldov, Duke of Gorchakov, etc. will not forget. .

They had more or less conflicts with Count Uvarov before, so how could such a good opportunity for revenge be missed?

Soon Nicholas I heard some discordant rumors. It is said that Count Uvarov was very dissatisfied with Count Rostovtsev and thought that selling Alaska to the nobles of his country was too bad. The Americans also said that Count Rostovtsev was trying to buy people's hearts because of his reputation.

In short, it was Count Uvarov's various dissatisfactions and dissatisfaction with Count Rostovtsev.

If it was a normal time, Nicholas I actually wished his courtiers would fight. Especially for ministers of the rank of Count Uvarov and Count Rostovtsev, it is best to dislike each other, so that he can feel at ease.

But the situation is different now. Count Rostovtsev has just come up with such a great idea to solve his urgent needs, and he has generously donated a lot of money. This is a model!

If at this time, the face of the model is slapped, who will work for him in the future!