The Shadow of Great Britain

Capítulo 1300: Chapter 172: Bird in a Cage

There is only one place in Russia free from oppression, and that is buried in the grave.

——Alexander Ivanovich Herzen

“Shubinsky?”

The Russian students’ smiles vanished immediately upon hearing this name, even their intoxicated minds became sober.

As for the German students, they clearly didn’t understand why this name caused such a reaction.

The mixture of hatred with distortion, the gritted teeth of anger concealed fear—emotions they had never experienced.

Herzen stared at Arthur’s face intently for a while, suddenly realizing that this young Professor from Gottingen seemed not as simple as he imagined.

“Sir, where did you hear this name? Is he your friend? Have you been to Russia before? Perhaps been to Moscow?”

Arthur nonchalantly raised his glass, saying: “No, I’ve never been to Russia in my life. I can’t call Shubinsky a friend, but we did have a nodding acquaintance. A few years ago, when he was serving as an assistant military officer at the Russian Embassy in Britain, we had dinner a few times. If I hadn’t just seen him downstairs, I might have almost forgotten I have such an acquaintance in Russia.”

Upon hearing this, the Russian students behind Herzen hurriedly and stealthily removed all the tricolor decorations symbolizing freedom and progress. They prayed that this British drunkard hadn’t noticed they ever wore such items.

But that was clearly impossible, as British detectives were notoriously sharp-eyed, and he planned to use this matter to build some rapport with the students.

Arthur paced around the room: “At first, I thought Shubinsky, like you, admired Mendelssohn’s musical talent and traveled all the way to Leipzig to enjoy the premiere of ‘Turandot.’ However, I later found that it wasn’t as simple as I imagined. Because Shubinsky boasted to me that after leaving Britain, he got promoted, and his jurisdiction is now at Moscow University.”

Ogarov suddenly stood up in silence. Although he didn’t say much, at critical moments like these, he always behaved with more courage than other students—perhaps that’s the key to him becoming the leader of the Herzen-Ogarov Group.

“Mr. Hastings,” Ogarov said, “I suppose you’ve already guessed the truth. I regret to tell you: you’re right. Shubinsky definitely came for us.”

These young Russians still didn’t realize that the British man before them had long marked them as research subjects in his heart; they wholeheartedly believed that this British Professor, respected by Heinrich Heine, was a fellow free spirit like them.

He deliberately risked sharing the news of Shubinsky’s visit to the theater with everyone, driven entirely by a shared ideal of freedom.

The young people made a naive mistake, but Great Dumas knew Arthur’s identity. Although he trusted Arthur, he didn’t know if Arthur trusted these young people before him.

So, if these silly lads were marked as enemies by Arthur, their future might be spent in the frigid Siberia.

Out of humanitarian spirit, Great Dumas promptly stood to hinder Arthur from setting a trap.

But Arthur seemed to have anticipated Great Dumas’ behavior, easily pressing the freshly standing plump man back onto the sofa.

He didn’t choose to directly ensnare words but rather employed the same trick he used on Shubinsky.

People are always reluctant to share personal information but often relish gossiping about others behind their backs.

Using this simple psychological principle, Arthur could inquire about the students’ stories from Shubinsky while extracting secrets about Shubinsky from the students and then categorize and package these messages to sell to the highest bidder.

Arthur asked worriedly, “I know he’s here for you; I’m just curious what exactly Shubinsky’s job is now. Was your Polish student Kritsky and the exiled Sungurov captured by him?”

“I don’t know who exactly captured them, but I’m sure Shubinsky had a hand in it.” Ogarov’s mood was terrible, yet he remained composed: “Do you know there is an institution called the Constitutional Guard in our country? Shubinsky is a key figure in it.”

“Constitutional Guard?” Arthur asked in confusion.

Although Arthur usually pretended to understand things, this time he was genuinely puzzled. Although he knew of the Third Bureau and its subordinate constabulary forces, he did not understand the administrative structure and communication methods between the two. If Ogarov were willing to explain it to him, Arthur would be happy to listen.

By doing so, he could complete next year’s first quarter diplomatic work report before officially taking up the role of Cultural Counsellor in Russia.

“Regarding the Investigation Research Report of the Russian Empire Imperial Office Third Bureau (Secret Police Institution) and Constabulary Forces”

Look at this title; for the Privy Council and Foreign Office, this title was more appealing than sweet and charming ladies.

As for the second quarter diplomatic report, it could be titled, “Using Moscow University as an Example: On the Significant Influence of Liberal Ideology on Russian Youth.”