The calm yet resolute speech of Lord Seymour caused Nicholas I's face to stiffen, then he forced a dry smile and said, "Oh, really?"

"Your Majesty, the peace and stability of the Near East depend on every responsible and committed European country; therefore, we must join hands to collectively maintain the peace and stability of the European region!" Lord Seymour said sincerely to Nicholas I, seemingly not noticing the slightly awkward look on Nicholas I's face.

Although Lord Seymour's attitude was so sincere, it seemed that Nicholas I had already decided in his heart that Lord Seymour was standing with the French Empire.

"Alright! I know your stance! If the Kingdom of Britain is unwilling to support me, then we will go it alone!" Nicholas I, like a child who had yet to grow up, sulkily said to Lord Seymour.

"Your Majesty, we are not unwilling to support you! We just hope that the various powers in the Near East can maintain a balance and collectively support the development of European peace and stability!" Lord Seymour cautiously responded, then added, "The Kingdom of Britain is neither willing nor wants to target any country. If any nation seeks to disrupt the peace of the Near East, Britain will defend it at all costs."

Under the firm stance of Lord Seymour, Nicholas I completely gave up the idea of wooing the Kingdom of Britain to partition the Ottoman Empire.

Now Nicholas I understood that the Kingdom of Britain only wished for a High Gate Government under their control rather than a fragmented Ottoman Empire.

"What if the Ottoman Empire itself disrupts the peace of the Near East?" Nicholas I asked Lord Seymour coldly.

"I believe the Ottoman Empire would not make such an unwise move!" Lord Seymour directly responded with a double standard.

"Fine! Lord Seymour, I'm tired now! I won't keep you here anymore!" Having tested Lord Seymour's attitude, Nicholas I issued an order for him to leave, as the Russian Empire's court would never welcome someone harboring malice against the Russian Empire.

Lord Seymour naturally understood Nicholas I's intention and hurriedly bowed to the Tsar in front of him. Nicholas I waved his hand slightly, and a guard escorted Lord Seymour out of the Russian Empire's palace.

After Lord Seymour had completely left Tsarskoye Selo, Nicholas I slowly walked to a portrait. The figure in the portrait was a middle-aged man dressed in the uniform of the Russian Empire, holding a sword. Judging by his appearance in the painting, he bore some resemblance to Nicholas I.

Standing under the portrait, Nicholas I gazed absentmindedly at the middle-aged man in the portrait, murmuring to himself, "Brother, what should I do? Where should the Russian Empire head from here?"

Indeed, the person in the portrait was none other than the "Holy King" Alexander I who "saved" all of Europe.

It was his decision for a scorched-earth strategy that led the French Empire, after entering Moscow, to find no supplies and thus be defeated by General Winter.

Of the more than 600,000 allied forces of France, fewer than 300,000 left the Russian Empire after the encounter. In subsequent wars, the Russian Empire pursued victories from Poland to French Mainland. Prussia and Austria, "liberated" by the Russian Empire, joined with it in the campaign against France.

Now, 38 years have passed since that war, and the once handsome young man (Nicholas I) has now become a middle-aged, charismatic man. Under his leadership, the Russian Empire was gradually moving toward strength (Nicholas I believed). Just one step, and Nicholas I could lead his army to seize Constantinople, let the double-headed eagle flag fly in the wind, accomplishing what generations of Tsars had not fulfilled for centuries.

However, on Nicholas I's path to Constantinople stood a frail and weak "patient," and behind this "patient" was a "persistent nemesis."

Decades ago, under the leadership of the Holy King, the Russian Empire defeated this "republican specter" that destroyed monarchies.

Decades later, the specter's nephew took up his will and established another empire, renaming it the "Second French Empire."

The once specter appeared on French soil as if returning to life, and this specter should have been eradicated again at its rebirth on this land.

However, the nations, filled with countless schemes in their minds, saw their hatred for the specter gradually fade after more than thirty years of development. They began to negotiate with this specter, hoping to use the specter's assurances to soothe their growing fears.

They succeeded; the specter agreed to their terms and made its guarantee to all of Europe, allowing them to rest easy and start warring with each other.

Only he, Nicholas I, knew that this persistent Second Empire would never cease its evil plans. They would try every possible means to destroy all of Europe.

Indeed, just as Nicholas I foresaw, with the specter's support, the Ottoman Empire rejected the Russian Empire's proposals and began to resist the Russian Empire.

```

Just when the Russian Empire needed allies to stand against them, the Kingdom of Britain and the Austrian Empire also stood on their side, beguiled by Jerome Bonaparte's cunning words (Nicholas I always believed that the sole reason the Kingdom of Britain allied with the French Empire was due to Jerome Bonaparte's efforts. The amicability of Felix Schwarzenberg towards France likewise displeased Nicholas I.) becoming their accomplices, fortune blessing them with a punitive exchange for Felix.

Even so, the Kingdom of Britain still stood with the specter...

Standing under the portrait, Nicholas I began to muse, recalling his elder brother Alexander I facing the First Empire with such grandeur and spirit.

Nicholas I believed he must not lose the dignity of the Romanov family, even without the Kingdom of Britain's support, the Russian Empire could defeat the French Empire.

Upon this thought, a spontaneous sense of mission surged into the heart of Nicholas I, compelling him to decide that he must, like Alexander I, defeat the French Empire.

While Nicholas I was lost in thought, an attendant suddenly burst into his room, informing Nicholas I about the Ottoman Empire's declaration of war against the Russian Empire. (France issued a warning to the Russian Empire to withdraw from the Danube River earlier than the time Nicholas I received the declaration of war from the Ottoman Empire Grand Assembly.)

"How dare they!" Nicholas I roared in anger.

He had never imagined that an impoverished and weakened Ottoman Empire would take the initiative to declare war on the Russian Empire, clearly having given them ample time to reconsider, why were they so unwilling to comply!

In Nicholas I's hegemonic worldview, the Ottoman Empire's declaration of war was a sheer mistake.

"Tell me, how dare they declare war! Tell me!" Nicholas I shouted loudly at the attendant.

The attendant, frightened by Nicholas I's fury, could not utter a word, only tremblingly indicating that the Ottoman Empire did not appreciate the Russian Empire!

After a while, Nicholas I, who was in a rage, gradually regained some reason, and he also remembered the warning sent by the French envoy yesterday.

Nicholas I's expression drastically changed, and he hurriedly inquired about the time taken for the message from the Ottoman Empire to reach St. Petersburg from the military officer.

The military officer dared not delay for a moment, immediately informing Nicholas I.

After sending out the war declaration, the Ottoman Empire Grand Assembly immediately rushed the war letter to Paskievich stationed in the Danube River Region.

After receiving the letter, Paskievich promptly convened Gorchakov and others to deliberate (during which Paskievich and Gorchakov debated whether to launch an immediate attack on the Silliskot Fortress, a fact unknown to the military officer), and then immediately reached Nicholas I, taking less than a week (6 days) for the entire journey.

"Why did France obtain the news faster than you!" Nicholas I sharply sensed a time discrepancy in the journey.

The distance from the Ottoman Empire to Paris, then from Paris to St. Petersburg, is much longer than from Constantinople to St. Petersburg.

This does not even include the time required for decision-making; according to usual reasoning, the warning given by the French envoy should have arrived after he received the Ottoman Empire's declaration of war.

"This..." the military officer did not know, telegraphs had already been set up from Constantinople to Paris, allowing France to learn the news within hours after the Imperial Grand Assembly's decision, facilitating quicker decision-making and message transmission, surpassing message transmission by carriage.

The wide application of the telegraph in France allowed Paris, the nerve center of France, to devise effective countermeasures in an extremely short time, avoiding a series of issues due to message delays.

The impoverished and weak Russian Empire had no spare funds to build a telegraph line from St. Petersburg to the Near East.

Moreover, Nicholas I was still unaware of the telegraph's military and diplomatic applications. In his view, telegraphs were just toys for financial speculators, something financially barren Russian Empire did not need at all.

"Forget it! Go and bring me the Minister of War, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, and the Third Department!" Faced with this clueless attendant, Nicholas I was exasperated enough to explode, suppressing his anger he waved the military officer away with a command.

"Yes!" The military officer responded immediately to Nicholas I, then promptly left Tsarskoye Selo for St. Petersburg.

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