Chapter 201 Marie Pavlovna

The welcome banquet for Arthur was held at the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg. This is the palace of the Russian Empire and the palace where the Russian tsars have lived the most since Catherine the Great.

Of course, as the emperor of Russia, one of the European powers, Nicholas II also has a large number of palaces and manors.

The Winter Palace is the largest palace in Russia and one of the most formal palaces. The workers' petition took place here before.

But according to tradition, it is summer now, and Nicholas II should vacation in the Livadia Palace in Yalta.

Yes, it is the place where the Yalta Conference was held in the future. The Yalta Conference was a meeting of the victorious countries of the war at that time on the distribution of post-war interests, and it was also a meeting that determined the world pattern after World War II.

Because he had to negotiate a treaty with William II, Nicholas II did not go to the Livadia Palace this summer, but stayed in the Winter Palace, so that he could go to the place of conversation at any time, which was near Biyuk Island.

The climate of St. Petersburg is relatively comfortable in summer. The temperature is always above 10 degrees Celsius during the day, and the highest can reach about 20 degrees Celsius.

But such good weather will not last long. After four consecutive months of summer, St. Petersburg will also usher in an eight-month winter.

I have to admire the Russians' tough skin and thick flesh. Such a cold winter is not something that anyone can bear.

This is also the reason why the powerful Napoleon and the later little mustaches failed in the Eastern Expedition to Russia in history.

In Russia, not only do we have to face the transportation routes that stretch for thousands of kilometers, but we also have to face the cold winter in Russia.

Although the climate of St. Petersburg is not suitable for being the capital, it makes up for this shortcoming in other aspects, allowing Russia to use it as the capital for more than a hundred years.

St. Petersburg has an outlet to the sea, and after the previous operation of Novgorod, it is a safe port with a high degree of development and belonging to the mainstream Russian culture.

If Russia wants to continue to develop towards Europe, St. Petersburg is the best choice among all Russian cities.

Nicholas II held a grand welcome ceremony for Arthur, and Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich personally welcomed him.

Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich is the uncle of the current Tsar Nicholas II and one of Nicholas II's most influential think tanks.

At the same time, Grand Duke Sergei also served as the Governor-General of Moscow and the Commander-in-Chief of the Moscow Military District. He was one of the most respected people in the Russian royal family by Nicholas II.

Under the premise that Crown Prince Alexei was only one year old, Grand Duke Sergei was also the most powerful and prestigious royal member of Russia besides Nicholas II.

I have to complain about the chaotic relationship between European nobles. The most powerful monarchies in Europe, Britain, Germany and Russia are actually relatives, and they are not distant relatives.

This is why the First World War is called the War of Relatives of the European Royal Family.

Inside the Winter Palace, Nicholas II has asked the guards to notify all the nobles near St. Petersburg to prepare for the welcome banquet in the evening.

No matter what the purpose is, it is not bad news for Russia to be friendly with Australia now.

At least in the Far East, Australia already has an influence that is not inferior to that of the second-strongest countries in Europe, and can provide Russia with a large amount of weapons and equipment support and industrial products.

Even in terms of food, Australia can provide a lot to Russia's Far East army, which will greatly solve the logistical problems that have troubled Russia for a long time.

After learning that Arthur currently has no engagement, Nicholas II has some ideas.

Although Australia's comprehensive influence is completely inferior to that of second-strong countries such as Spain and the Netherlands, Australia also has an advantage, that is, it is far away in Oceania and does not have to worry about participating in the disputes in Europe.

Moreover, Russia currently pays more attention to the Far East issue. In the Far East, the influence that these two countries can exert may not be as much as Australia.

If Australia can be tied to the Russian chariot and let Australia provide some logistical assistance to the Russian Far East, then won't Russia have an advantage in the next Far East hegemony?

But Nicholas II's eldest daughter, Grand Duchess Olga, is only ten years old now, so she is naturally not suitable for this banquet.

Unable to think of a suitable candidate for the time being, Nicholas II had to call his beloved Queen Alexandra Feodorovna and let the women do their most professional work.

Queen Alexandra Feodorovna didn't take it seriously at first, but when she heard that she was looking for a marriage partner for her cousin Arthur, she concentrated on searching her memory and looking for the right person in the entire Russian royal family.

Yes, the mother of Queen Alexandra Feodorovna, Princess of Hesse-Darmstadt, was Princess Alice, the second daughter of Queen Victoria.

But unfortunately, as a descendant of Queen Victoria, Queen Alexandra Feodorovna carried the gene of Queen Victoria's hemophilia.

This is also the reason why Emperor Wilhelm II of Germany strongly supported Queen Feodorovna to marry Nicholas, who was still the crown prince at the time, so that hemophilia could enter the Russian royal family, and no one would have a good life.

"Your Majesty, what do you think of Mary?" Queen Feodorovna thought for a long time before slowly uttering a name.

"Mary? Are you talking about the Mary who is now adopted by Grand Duke Sergei?" Nicholas II asked.

Mary's full name is Mary Pavlovna. She is the legitimate daughter of Grand Duke Paul, the uncle of Tsar Nicholas II.

But Grand Duchess Alexandra died when Grand Duchess Mary was one year old, and her father, Grand Duke Paul, was so grief-stricken that he could not take care of the young Mary and her newly born brother, so he had to give them to Grand Duke Sergei, Grand Duke Paul's brother, for adoption.

But because Grand Duke Paul later married a divorced woman, the former Tsar Alexander III was very angry and did not allow Grand Duke Paul to return to Russia again. Grand Duke Sergei and his wife officially became the guardians of Mary and her brother.

In practical terms, Grand Duke Sergei raised Mary and her brother since childhood. Although there was no nominal father-daughter relationship, the actual relationship was not much different.

As a legitimate grand duchess from the Russian royal family and a peer of Nicholas II, Mary was indeed suitable to be the candidate for this marriage.

However, Grand Duchess Mary is only seventeen years old (two years older than the original history, a small modification, according to the setting of the book), isn't the age difference between her and Arthur a bit big?

Queen Alexandra does not have this problem. For the actual European royal marriage, the rank and prestige between the two families are far more important than the age difference between the two.

The Saxe-Coburg-Gotha family to which Arthur belongs is even more prosperous than the Romanov family of the Russian royal family, so naturally there will be no phenomenon of mismatch.

After finalizing the candidates, Nicholas II asked Queen Alexandra to remind Grand Duchess Sergei to let Mary prepare for the evening banquet.

In fact, in addition to Grand Duchess Mary, who was personally selected by Nicholas II, the banquet also had dozens of Russian nobles and their daughters.

If Grand Duchess Mary is the main candidate for this Russian marriage, then the other noble ladies are just foils.

Of course, it cannot be ruled out that these noble ladies will be selected by Arthur and become Arthur's lovers.

After all, the current European royal marriages also have to consider the attitudes of both parties. For a monarch like Arthur who has already gained real power, his attitude is far more important than the interests of his family.

In a room in the Grand Duke Sergei's mansion.

In the house, a young and beautiful girl dressed up in fancy clothes is sitting on the dressing table and looking at herself carefully. There is also a girl dressed as a maid standing next to her, who is carefully helping the girl comb her long hair.

"Lolita, how about it, is it beautiful?" The girl looked at her face while looking at the maid next to her with expectation.

Although she is a maid, it is actually easy to cultivate the feelings of girls. For Grand Duchess Mary, Lolita is more like her friend.

"Of course it looks good, Your Highness. If you wear this pearl necklace, Your Highness, you will be the most beautiful swan at the banquet!" Lolita replied with a smile while combing Mary's shoulder-length hair.

Similar scenes occurred in many places in St. Petersburg this afternoon. For the Russian nobles, Arthur, who has an independent territory and holds real power, is also a golden son-in-law. Although it is a little remote, the interests of the family are more important than anything else, right?

In addition to the relationship established between Russia and Australia during the war, if these nobles can be related to the powerful monarch Arthur, even if it is just as a lover, it can at least allow their families to obtain strong support from abroad.

The first thing the nobles look at when they marry is the other party's family and the relationship between the legitimate and illegitimate children. Arthur was born into one of the most prominent families in Europe, the current royal family of the British Empire, Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, and is also a member of the legitimate family.

These two points alone are enough to attract most nobles, not to mention the 100 million pounds of property given to Arthur by Queen Victoria, which caused a sensation in Europe at the time.

At more than eight o'clock in the evening, the grand welcome banquet finally began.

As the protagonist, Arthur also attracted a lot of attention and gazes at this banquet.

Wearing a privately customized dress, Arthur has become a handsome boy with extraordinary appearance after a simple dress.

Although he is not so handsome, he is also in line with the Western aesthetics. With his top family background and wealth, it is not an exaggeration to say that he is fascinating.

There are a wide variety of delicacies at the banquet, but Arthur is not in the mood to look at them at this time.

The reason is simple. As the protagonist of this banquet, someone comes to invite Arthur to dance every once in a while, and they are all teenage noble girls.

Arthur didn't know it at first, but soon understood the real purpose of Nicholas II holding this banquet.

These noble girls one after another, what else is this if not a blind date?

However, Arthur is not opposed to it. After all, he is already 22 years old, and the huge Federation of Australia and New Zealand does not have a legal heir. This is also what all federal citizens and officials are looking forward to.

The country has successors and a legal crown prince, which will stabilize more unstable factors in the country.

In addition, Arthur's mother, Princess Louise, urges him every once in a while, and Arthur is indeed a little bit amused.

Isn't the best way to get rid of this situation to find a qualified duchess for the Australian Federation?

Speaking of this, I have to praise the beauty of Russian girls. No matter what happens in the future, the beauty of teenage Russian girls is indeed at its peak. Arthur can be very confident about this, both in the future and now.

Before looking for a duchess for Australia, we have to think carefully about one question, that is, whether it is beneficial to Australia to marry with Russia.

If we only look at it from a historical perspective, the Russian royal family will be wiped out in more than ten years, and marrying with the Russian royal family will not be of any help at that time.

But now is very different from history. Russia's disastrous defeat in the Russo-Japanese War in history also led to more public anger at home.

But now is different. Russia's failure is more of a temporary compromise with domestic and foreign troubles, rather than being defeated by the army of the island country.

Although there are still many internal troubles in Russia, Russia, which is not troubled by the German problem, can also have more than ten years of development and recuperation time.

In addition, with Germany's aid and loans, at least the corrupt country of the Tsarist Empire can hold on for a while.

It is even hard to say whether Russia will participate in World War I in the future. Will Russia, which does not mobilize its troops, really be overthrown by the revolution that breaks out in the future?

No one can be sure about this matter, but the probability of being overthrown has been greatly reduced.

Moreover, judging from the current situation, there are still many benefits of marrying with Russia.

First of all, Russia is currently the fourth largest power in the world. Except for the British Empire, the German Empire, France and the United States, which have sufficient advantages, other countries are not necessarily Russia's opponents.

Secondly, Russia has a large population, and a considerable part of these people have an immigration tendency.

If it can marry with Russia, Australia can also accept some of these Russian immigrants. Of course, this must be after excluding revolutionaries and dangerous elements.

Russia is still thinking about its Far East policy, and if they want to realize its Far East policy, they must also rely on Australia's support.

This also means that Australia can obtain more resources and benefits from Russia, and can also cultivate Russia's Far East strength, so that Russia's army in the Far East can always remain above the strength of the island country, and suppress the rise and expansion of the island country in disguise.

You know, it took only a few decades for the island country to transform from a backward feudal country into a powerful country recognized by the world.

Even in the future, the ambitions of the island country will expand to the entire Pacific Rim, even Australia and New Zealand.

This also means that the island country is likely to grow into one of Australia's powerful enemies. It is necessary to prepare in advance and use Russia's power to suppress the island country.

Although this may lead to Russia's dominance in the Far East and occupy more areas of the Qing Dynasty in the south.

But in fact, the major powers have a considerable part of their interests in these areas, and naturally will not allow Russia to expand wantonly in this area.

If Russia wants to ask for more, I am afraid that European countries led by Britain will not agree, and the island country will fight to the death to defend its last chance to become a powerful country.

At that time, the Far East will become a hegemony between Russia and the island country, and Australia's military industry will usher in new opportunities.

After thinking about all this, Arthur is not opposed to the possible marriage with Russia, and he has even taken the initiative to choose.

Under the premise of being well-matched, Arthur naturally wants to find a qualified girl for Australia, at least smart and considerate, but will not interfere in Australian politics, and be a duchess at ease.

Of course, appearance is also one of the important indicators for Arthur's selection. Although appearance is not so important, who doesn't want the person around him to have a beautiful face?

After a while, Nicholas II also attended the banquet with Queen Alexandra, but he just greeted Arthur for a few words and left.

The host of this banquet was Arthur. Nicholas II knew that if he stayed at the banquet, he would attract some attention, so he left tactfully.

After Nicholas II left, the banquet gradually reached its climax as the beautiful music sounded again.

Many people have entered the dance area, dancing to the music, setting off the atmosphere of the banquet.

So far, Arthur has been invited no less than ten times, and has danced three or four times.

Even though he was prepared in advance, he was still a little tired, so he found a place in the corner and sat down.

Next to Arthur, Mary, who had never thought of a reason to invite Arthur to dance, suddenly widened her eyes. She didn't expect Arthur to come to her door.

Arthur also saw Mary next to him at this time, and smiled and nodded as a greeting.

Gulp!

Mary quietly swallowed her saliva, cheered herself up in her heart, picked up a glass of red wine and stood up, wanting to chat with Arthur.

It just happened that, perhaps because she was too nervous, Mary slipped when she stood up and accidentally tripped on the stool.

The stool was not light, and Mary lost her balance all of a sudden, and fell on Arthur's legs, and her head hit Arthur's vitals directly.

"Ah!"

Fortunately, Arthur was prepared in advance, and before the danger came, he blocked Mary's head with his hands, barely dragging Mary's head.

Mary's cherry lips touched the vitals lightly like a dragonfly touching the water, and then she was helped up by Arthur.

"Are you okay, miss?" Arthur asked politely.

The accident caught Arthur off guard, and the sudden contact made him stagger.

"I'm fine, Your Highness." Mary's cheeks were as red as ripe apples, and even red enough to bleed.

Although Mary didn't know more complicated things, she knew that such close contact was not right.

"Sorry, Your Highness. I just tripped accidentally." Mary explained quickly.

Although the accident caused her and Arthur to have contact, Mary didn't want to be considered intentional, and didn't want to give Arthur a bad impression.

"It's okay, Miss. Can I know your name?" Arthur smiled and shook his head, not caring about what just happened.

In fact, Arthur only noticed the girl's appearance now. Even in a banquet full of beauties, the girl's appearance was so outstanding and charming.

"Mary, Mary Pavlovna, Your Highness." Mary nodded gently and replied.

What happened in the corner attracted everyone's attention. After all, where Arthur was, it represented the attention of the whole audience.

But when everyone saw that the protagonists of the incident were Arthur and Archduchess Mary, they all waited for the result very tactfully.

"Mary? Very good, can I invite you to dance?" Arthur nodded and invited the girl in front of him.

Mary nodded gently again, and her white jade-like hand took Arthur's hand, and followed Arthur to the center of the dance floor.

5,400 words two-in-one chapter, please support! The heroine is not easy to find, and various information has been checked for a long time. This is a late chapter, please support! There is also an easter egg chapter, don't miss it later.