Chapter 19: The Russian Civil War - The Poisoned Holy Grail
May 1918. Europe was once again beginning to burn, and Russia was no exception.
The peace negotiations aimed at ending World War I ultimately proved futile. Exhausted by the war, Britain had tried to mediate between France and Germany, but the conference collapsed when France and Germany each deemed the other's demands unreasonable.
Fools,Trotsky thought, smiling.
"This is good for us," he remarked. "If these two imperialists fight each other to death, we can just turn both into red republics."
"In the East, we call that a fisherman's gain," Comrade Lee replied.
"Is that so? It seems your ancestors had plenty of experience with such things."
Meanwhile, in Southern Russia, another rebellion had broken out, but this time it was suppressed more easily than before.
After the Battle of Yekaterinodar, the Red Army commanders learned a crucial lesson: no matter how the White Army attacked or maneuvered, they could be held at bay by defending key strategic points.
The Rebel Army attacked Rostov again but failed to breach the city's defenses and retreated. The Cossacks of Southern Russia, who had been barely restraining their anger, now began to lean favorably toward the Bolsheviks.
If you still couldn't grasp the situation after seeing the Rebel Army defeated twice, there was clearly a problem.
The surviving Rebel Army commanders, reduced to eating roadside grass and slaughtering their horses for meat, finally retreated to Siberia.
Among their number was General Anton Denikin. The name sounded familiar, and I had a nagging feeling that letting him live would be a mistake, but the bus had already left the station.
Siberia was a melting pot of all kinds of anti-Soviet factions, from the Mensheviks who opposed the Bolsheviks to the far-right reactionaries.
Their central city was even named "Ufa." How could a city be named "Ufa"?
It was a truly fitting name for a city dominated by right-wing extremists.
Thus, Russia split into the Red Army in the west and the White Army in the east.
Supporting the White Army was the Czechoslovak Legion.
These were essentially the Czech Independence Army, who had fought on the Russian side during the Great War while declaring their independence from Austria-Hungary.
But when Russia collapsed after the October Revolution and signed peace treaties with Germany and Austria, they found themselves in a precarious position, like duck eggs abandoned mid-stream.
As they retreated across Siberia by the Trans-Siberian Railway, clashes with the Red Army forced them to seize control of the railway and key stations, leading them to ally with the White Army.
If I had been there, I would have handled the negotiations differently. Unfortunately, I was convalescing in Tobolsk at the time.
"The Czechoslovak Army Group was already cooperating with the Allied Powers, so it's no surprise they turned against us. It would have been stranger if they hadn't been hostile after we ended the war with Germany."
"Still, there was no need to treat them as enemies."
"That was indeed unfortunate. But the real problem wasn't the Czechoslovak Army Group."
The Allied Powers, using the excuse of supporting the Czechoslovak Army Group, began to gradually move against us. They despised both Germany and the Reds, and had been trying to intervene in the Russian Civil War since its early days.
Britain had already sent a fleet to the Arctic Sea, and Japan had dispatched warships to Vladivostok under the pretext of protecting refugees.
The Allied Powers, led by Japan, were steadily preparing to intervene, though their plans were temporarily delayed as the German Winter Offensive left the Allies in disarray. From the moment Soviet Russia was established, it found itself at war with the entire world.
"It was bound to happen eventually," I said. "The Revolution is a poisoned chalice. We knew that as soon as we sparked it, a Counter-Revolution would erupt not just in Russia, but across the globe. All we need to do is prepare accordingly."
I nodded in agreement. The Interventionist Forces, hamstrung by supply issues and domestic opposition, couldn't advance deep into Russian territory. The Great War was still raging, draining manpower by the day. Russia's only task was to suppress the Rebel Army and endure. That was all.
And Russia's vastness provided the perfect conditions for this strategy.
***
The Great Negotiation Bloc, led by Japan, had been steadily preparing to intervene in Russia. Though their plans were temporarily delayed by the German Winter Offensive, which left the Allies in disarray, the intervention was inevitable.
From the moment Soviet Russia was established, it found itself at war with the entire world.
"It was bound to happen eventually," I said. "The Revolution is a poisoned chalice. We knew that as soon as we sparked it, a Counter-Revolution would erupt not just in Russia, but across the globe. All we need to do is prepare accordingly."
I nodded in agreement. The Interventionist Forces, hamstrung by supply issues and domestic opposition, couldn't advance deep into Russian territory. The Great War was still raging, draining manpower by the day. Russia's only task was to suppress the Rebel Army and endure. That was all.
And Russia's vastness provided the perfect conditions for this strategy.
***
Trotsky, appointed as People's Commissar for Military Affairs, had been frequently visiting the front lines recently to boost morale among the soldiers.
What a big shot he is. If I were with the White Army, I'd order snipers to take his head off every time he showed up.
Instead, having returned to the Minority Affairs Committee through a deal with Stalin, I recently began working on something that had all the government's top officials tied up: drafting the Constitution of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic.
Of course, this was a transitional constitution, and once the (provisional) Soviet Union was officially established, a new constitution based on this one would likely be created.
But in another sense, this constitution would be the first of its kind for the world's first Socialist state, the Soviet Union, and would serve as a model for all future constitutions.
Thus, I began discussing minority ethnic groups and the institutions responsible for managing them with Stalin and the draft Constitution.
"Can we really use the abbreviation 'Russian Republic' for the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic? I'm worried it might remind people of Kerensky's Russian Republic established after the February Revolution."
"I don't think it will be a problem. Anyone reading this Constitution will already know it's a Socialist one, right?"
"True. Then can we end it with 'The Russian Republic is a free society for all the people of Russia'?"
"Wouldn't it be better to add words like 'workers' or 'laboring' before 'people'? You know the saying, 'He who does not work...'."
"Don't eat it." Understood. We'll call them "working people." Using "workers" alone feels a bit... well, it might seem like we're looking down on farmers or soldiers.
An immense amount of effort went into crafting every single word of the Constitution.
And contrary to popular belief, Stalin's Russian was surprisingly poor. He claimed it was only at a high school level, which means he was actually worse than me, despite my own language skills being artificially boosted.
This lack of proficiency often left him unfamiliar with specialized terminology.
Yet he insisted on micromanaging even the most trivial details, making tasks take twice as long.
"Don't put the comma here. It would be better a little further back."
"Comrade Stalin, please..."
Trotsky, who usually ignored trivial matters after handling major issues properly, was strangely missed.
"But aren't we supposed to be dealing with minority ethnic group issues?"
"That's right."
I suddenly realized this while having dinner with Stalin in the Kremlin cafeteria.
"Then why are we drafting the constitution?"
"We're short on manpower," Stalin replied casually.
Russia is short on manpower? What nonsense! Isn't Russia the country that harvests manpower like wheat from the fields?
"To be precise, we're short on specialized manpower. And I'm one of the highest-ranking officials in the Politburo. You're my colleague working alongside me."
"So you're also assigning me the task of drafting the constitution?"
"Well, being a member of the Council of People's Commissars means you hold the highest position in Russia. It's not particularly unusual to entrust someone in such a position with drafting the constitution."
No, isn't it strange to reduce the highest-ranking official to a slave drafting the constitution?
"Anyway, I'm drafting the constitution while simultaneously carrying out my original duties. Recently, I've been involved in the establishment of the Kuban-Black Sea Soviet Republic and even extended my influence into Georgia, my area of expertise. In fact, since we can't intervene in the Far East right now, isn't it only natural that I should help you?"
Ah... right... so I'm being used because I have relatively little to do.
"Then you should give me a proper position. Isn't the Minority Affairs Committee supposed to be handled by one person? I deserve a more substantial role..."
"Oh, Comrade Siyoung. Are you seeking a promotion?"
A somewhat familiar voice suddenly came from behind me.
Turning around, I faced a face I hadn't seen in a long time.
"Comrade Sverdlov? It's been a while."
It was Yakov Sverdlov, who had recently risen to the nominal position of head of state in Russia.
Yes, that's right. It was the same man who had taught me everything about the Winter Palace raid, from step one to step ten.
"It's been a while, Comrade Lee. So, are you dissatisfied with your current position?"
"That's not it at all. As a member of the Minority Affairs Committee, I just find it a bit frustrating that I can't work on matters related to the Far East, my area of expertise..."
"Then I have a perfect position for you. How would you like to be the People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs?"
What?
I frantically shook my head.
"No way! People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs? I don't have that kind of time!"
"The current People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs has even less time than you. In fact, having signed the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk and even taken a photo with the German commander, you're actually the most qualified person for the job. Don't you agree?"
No way! That photo nearly got me roasted to a crisp just yesterday, and now you're bringing it up again? I don't want to be the scapegoat again.
"Ah, and I've promised Comrade Stalin that I'll continue working on minority ethnic group affairs for a while longer. So..."
"I'm fine with that. Just give me some advice on minority ethnic group issues after we've stabilized the Far East."
This clueless bastard... But seeing the corners of his mouth twitch, I realized he was doing this deliberately.
"Well, since Comrade Stalin says it's fine, I assume Comrade Lee is also agreeable. I'll speak to Comrade Lenin soon and arrange for your promotion to People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs."
"Wait, my opinion..."
But once the head of state and a Politburo member had schemed to send me to the most reviled position in Russia—the People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs—I had no say in the matter.
The next day, a appointment document bearing the seals of Lenin and Sverdlov arrived, and I left my warm, comfortable room for a more dazzling one.
I had drunk from the poisoned chalice in one gulp.
***
"Siyeong... Comrade. Should I move these files here?"
"Yeah. Those are related to the Great Negotiation Bloc, so put them over there. Oh, that's Japan-related? I told you to separate the Japan-related files. Just put them up there."
So, like everyone else, I decided to hire a secretary.
Sverdlov was almost shocked to hear that I hadn't had a secretary until now, but anyway.
I decided to appoint Maria Romanova as my secretary.
While Anastasia lacked practical skills, Maria was said to be proficient in foreign languages and a good writer.
At this point, the People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs' mission was to delay the intervention of the Allied Powers by even a single day.
But Soviet Russia still hadn't established diplomatic relations with any country.
So how to delay things? Naturally, we needed a declaration.
And now I was in a position where I could have such things done by my secretary.
"I have a Central Committee meeting soon, so draft a declaration condemning foreign intervention in the Finnish Civil War. I'll be out for about an hour or two, so it would be good if you could finish it before I return."
"Yes... understood, Comrade Siyoung..."
As I left the city center, draped in a light jacket, I felt a deep sense of satisfaction, as if the recent complaints about having too much work were now distant memories.
Right. Power is truly wonderful!
When else, if not now, would I get to order around a former princess as my secretary?