While Alexei and the other three strolled through Rhine City, Ernst was keeping a close watch on every development within Russia.
Morin, director of the National Security Bureau, reported, "The situation within Russia is deteriorating at an accelerating pace. The tide of opposition against the Tsar is growing stronger and stronger. Capitalists, ordinary people, and even some nobles—more and more are beginning to question Nicholas II's abilities."
"Even before the war began, domestic contradictions in Russia had already intensified to a certain extent. After the outbreak of the Great War, those contradictions were not diverted; instead, they only grew fiercer. The military defeats on the Russian front late last year further aggravated the instability within the Russian regime."
Ernst asked, "How is the surveillance of the Russian Labor Party progressing?"
Morin said, "At the beginning of the year, they organized several strikes in Russian cities such as Saint Petersburg. Though all of them were suppressed by Nicholas II's government, our analysis suggests that their activities will become increasingly frequent."
"The Russians are now a pile of dry firewood—any stray spark can set them ablaze. These Labor Party members are the arsonists. Their actions have severely damaged Nicholas II's prestige, especially the most recent strike movement in Saint Petersburg."
Just think about it: the current course of the European War could be said to concern Russia's future national destiny. By all reason, Russia should have united from top to bottom at such a time and weathered this dangerous period.
But the absurdity was that the Russians did not think the same way as Nicholas II. Naturally, their attitudes differed somewhat.
For instance, the capitalists did not believe Nicholas II's launching of the war was the problem. The problem was that Nicholas II and the Russian nobility were simply too incompetent, with