Simon's private Boeing 767 landed at Pushkin International Airport on the northwest outskirts of Moscow around 10 a.m.
In addition to Celia Miller, who came here in advance to arrange Simon's schedule, those who came to pick him up were also Yeltsin's second daughter Tatyana Tyachenko and the current chief of staff of the Kremlin Palace, Valentin Yumashev. .
These are details that both parties have communicated in advance.
Simon came to Russia this time mainly to give an endorsement and help Russia get through the current economic difficulties. However, Simon did not intend to make a big splash and would only release some information in a quite restricted manner.
On the contrary, Moscow certainly hopes that Simon's visit will be as publicized as possible. Celia, who arrived in advance, had to give a warning. If Russia makes its own claims and publicizes the news of Simon's visit, the maintenance On the Stroll System side, we do not rule out the possibility of also publicly announcing the cancellation of some cooperation between the two parties.
The final result is the immediate result.
The two people who came to pick him up were definitely among Yeltsin's cronies.
Needless to say, Yeltsin’s second daughter, Valentin Yumashev, the current chief of staff of the President, in addition to his current official position, is also the author of Yeltsin’s personal biography, a standard pen for the royal family.
Not only that, Simon also knew that Yumashev later became Yeltsin's son-in-law and got together with Yeltsin's second daughter after ending his second marriage.
Simon walked down the ramp at the airport and greeted Tatiana, whom he had met before. Then he heard the other person personally help introduce Yumashev. His tone was unknowingly intimate, and he probably understood the current relationship between the two. unusual.
Of course, this kind of thing has nothing to do with Simon.
Although it was not intended to be public, after leaving the airport, Simon's motorcade was escorted by police cars all the way to Silver Pine Park in the west of Moscow, about 10 kilometers away from the city center.
This is an artificial island covering an area of about 400 hectares surrounded by the Moskva River that crosses Moscow. Simon had set aside 50 hectares of land on the west side of Silver Pine Island a few years in advance, and built his own island like the Castle Manor outside St. Petersburg. Residence in Moscow.
The motorcade passed through the manor corridor shaded by green trees and arrived in front of the main villa.
This is a three-story, zigzag-shaped building with a blue roof and white walls covering an area of 5,000 square meters. It is said to be a villa, but it is far from the large-roof country style in North America. It is more like a French classical style castle.
Everyone got off the car at the square in front of the main villa. Even Tatiana Diachenko couldn't help but be envious when looking at the castle-like mansion in front of her.
Although the Yeltsin family currently lives in the Kremlin, the Kremlin is not privately owned. Once Yeltsin steps down, the family will have to move out.
Tatiana's husband Alexei Diachenko has used Yeltsin's connections to start an energy business in recent years. However, Diachenko's talent in business can only be described as mediocre. Over the years, the couple's assets have amounted to Both are less than US$500 million.
Relative to ordinary people, such an asset is certainly considered a huge wealth.
However, comparing people to each other can always make people angry.
Not to mention the Diyachenko couple, even if the entire Yeltsin family's public and private assets were combined, there would be nothing worth mentioning in front of Simon Westeros.
As for building various luxurious manors in any corner of the world that you like, don't even think about it.
The disparity is despairing.
At a certain moment, Tatiana could not help but imagine how wonderful it would be if the world could go back to the Tsarist era two hundred years ago. Her father was the Tsar of the Russian Empire, she was the second princess, and the entire country belonged to the Yeltsin family.
Of course I can only think about it.
Putting aside these unrealistic thoughts, she was surrounded by others and followed Simon Westeros into the villa. Tatyana once again sighed with emotion. The young man beside her, with his huge personal assets, and the influence of this wealth in this era The hidden power contained in it is probably more powerful than any king in the era of royal power.
This is a capital society.
Everyone walked through the main villa hall and sat down in the reception room next door. They waited for the waitress to bring coffee and then left. Only four people, Simon, Celia, Tatyana and Yumashev, were left in the reception room. Tatyana Then he started talking about business: "Simon, my father has prepared a lunch reception at the Kremlin Palace to welcome you. Ms. Miller conveyed your intention. However, even if reporters cannot be present during the reception, I am thinking that after the reception , can we hold a small press conference, rest assured, there will be no questions, only my father and you will give a simple communication speech?"
Simon leaned on the sofa holding a cup of coffee and shook his head directly after hearing this: "Tanya, I think Celie has communicated with you very fully. I am not a person who likes to make temporary changes."
Simon's visit this time, at a public level, will only leave some photos after the lunch reception at the Kremlin Palace, as well as a press release that has been strictly reviewed by the Wei family team, and there will be no other public information.
After all, we still have to be a little concerned about the attitude of the Federation.
Simon doesn't want to be labeled as Simon Westeros's liaison with Russia one day in the future.
Simon was able to come to Moscow in person, and in addition to the established photos and press releases, he would also confirm some cooperation projects that would also be made public. This was already a great deal of face for the Yeltsin authorities. Tatyana tried again, but Simon had no intention of letting go, so she could only give up the idea of letting Simon speak out more for Russia, and left first.
After sending Tatyana away, Simon and Celia discussed some details of the cooperation project that was about to be signed in the afternoon, ate something by the way, and then got up to change clothes.
The lunch reception at the Kremlin Palace starts at 12 o'clock sharp.
The manor on Silver Pine Island is not far from the city center. Simon arrived on time and it was already very busy here.
Not only were the giants from Russia's political and business circles basically present, but also the U.S. Ambassador to Russia and some U.S. business representatives from Russia. Just the necessary greetings took more than 20 minutes.
As expected, someone who Simon has been quietly paying attention to is also present today.
When it was the turn to greet Simon according to the order of seniority, the two parties simply shook hands and exchanged greetings. Probably because there were outsiders around, the other party also took the initiative to introduce himself, as if there was no connection in advance.
However, Simon, who is also quite keen at looking at people, felt an obvious inquiry from the other person's eyes at a certain moment.
In just two years, from a former KGB who almost lost his job and became a taxi driver, okay, this is a bit exaggerated, to be precise, he was a former deputy mayor of St. Petersburg, and rose all the way to the current position of director of the Russian Federal Security Service. Really Although he is in real power, one person often thinks about that chance encounter in St. Petersburg two years ago.
A rather brief communication.
Simon Westeros invited him to work for him and then asked him to come to Moscow.
Then, it was a smooth journey.
Considering Yeltsin's attitude when he had many contacts with Mr. President, it is obvious that this cannot be an accident.
The most important thing is that from this position, one step forward, two steps to be precise, we will reach the highest throne in the country.
Someone feels like this is becoming more and more likely.
However, what then
More importantly, he didn't know what Simon Westeros wanted to gain by doing all this? When the time comes, can you afford it
Simon could probably guess someone's state of mind, but it was impossible to have any communication with the other person when there were a bunch of people around.
The reception lasted two hours.
Near the end, the photographer who had been arranged in advance appeared and took a few staged photos of Simon and Yeltsin having a happy conversation with the cocktail party as the background. Then the cocktail party came to an end.
Hundreds of guests dispersed, but Simon did not leave. He and Yeltsin came to an office in the Kremlin palace.
The two parties sat opposite each other on the sofa in the reception area. After Yeltsin's second daughter personally delivered a pot of coffee, they left. Yeltsin, who was leaning on the sofa, had completely lost the glowing face and high spirits he had at the previous cocktail party. He looked quite tired, even It's weakness.
Of course Simon knew that Yeltsin had never fully recovered from his heart surgery two years ago.
Neither party spoke for a while. Simon was sipping a cup of coffee. After a while, Yeltsin's voice finally sounded from the other side: "Simon, I have to take the path you gave me now, right?"
Simon did not expect that Yeltsin, who had always had a strong personality, would suddenly say these words. He held the coffee cup in his hands, leaned against the sofa and said, "How to choose? The initiative is actually still in your hands."
Speaking of which, this was the first time that the two parties had met each other until today. However, because they had known each other for a long time, they had become quite familiar with each other unconsciously after just a cocktail party.
Of course, fundamentally, this familiarity is based on strength.
If Simon was just an ordinary businessman, even the oligarchs in Russia who could control the situation would certainly not be able to see Yeltsin's weak side at this time, let alone the current atmosphere of near-confidence.
When Yeltsin heard Simon's answer, he still shook his head with a bit of dejection: "I don't have much initiative anymore, Simon. Frankly speaking, I only hope to keep my family from being liquidated in two years."
"This is actually not difficult," Simon said: "When the time comes, you and your family can go to the UK, or Australia is also a good choice. That is my territory."
Yeltsin shook his head again: "Tanya and the others can leave, but I can't."
Simon paused and understood.
To put it simply, two words, shame.
It is undeniable that Yeltsin had a strong desire for power and was selfish for his family. However, he was still a relatively shameless person and understood that if he fled, not only himself, but the entire country would be disgraced.
Simon could not comment.
Most of the time, people are contradictory.
Perhaps Yeltsin made Simon feel that in promoting the disintegration of the Soviet Union and even Russia's reforms in recent years, Simon felt that many measures could only be described as stupid. However, if Yeltsin was not a patriot and did not want his country to be strong, he deliberately Chaosing one's own country is not true.
Unfortunately, too often, the gap between ability and ambition is always relatively large.
It can only be said that Yeltsin is a top politician, but that's all.
After a moment of silence, Yeltsin finally spoke again: "Simon, do you think Vladimir is really qualified?"
"It's been two years. I believe you know this better than I do."
"No, Simon, after what happened with Kiriyenko, I am very unsure now. You should also know that Kiriyenko is also a very outstanding young man."
"I can only say that you used the wrong person at the wrong time, and in the wrong direction." Simon said: "Kiriyenko is indeed very capable. The problem is that you forced him to push him. Except for your Support has no other basis, and it has even aroused collective opposition in the Russian parliament, which is doomed to accomplish nothing, let alone a big issue like a national economic crisis."
Yeltsin pondered for a moment and said: "I understand what you mean, Simon. When the time comes, I will win the support of those people. However, I cannot guarantee that they will agree. Maybe, then, you will be needed to intervene."
Neither of them pointed it out, but they both knew it.
The 'those people' in Yeltsin's words refer to the major oligarchs who basically monopolize the Russian domestic economy. These people not only control the Russian media, but also have strong influence in the Russian parliament.
One of the key reasons why Yeltsin strongly promoted Kiriyenko at the beginning of the year met with strong resistance from the State Duma was that there was no good communication with the major oligarchs in advance.
The reason why Chernomyrdin has not been successfully reset recently is actually for the same reason.
In the past, the key to someone's successful rise to power was to obtain the permission of the major oligarchs and then receive all-round support in politics, economy, military and public opinion.
Simon also nodded in agreement with Yeltsin's request.
Based on the business layout of the Westeros system in Russia in recent years, in addition to its direct descendant Mikhail Friedman, there are also various cooperations with other oligarchic groups, coupled with the current overall economic environment in Russia There is a demand for endorsement of the Westeros system. When Simon opens his mouth, everyone will give him face.
Seeing Simon nodding in agreement, Yeltsin felt relieved and continued: "Last question, Simon, what next? I mean, after Vladimir became prime minister, I remember you said that you need to give him a year to accumulate prestige. However, if we continue to use the methods used in the 1996 election this time, I think it is likely to be ineffective?"
"It's very simple." Simon stopped hiding this time and said, "The best way to divert conflicts is war. Similarly, if a person wants to accumulate prestige, the best way is also war, to win a war. "
When Yeltsin heard this answer, he reacted instantly: "Chechnya?"
"Chechnya!"
Yeltsin immediately hesitated: "Simon, this is not easy."
Yeltsin obviously has not forgotten Russia's disastrous defeat in Chechnya a few years ago, and even had to sign an armistice agreement that almost acquiesced to Chechnya's independence.
Simon said: "First of all, it is not easy to fight this war, because this is the only way for Russia to unite people's hearts as quickly as possible under the current situation. Secondly, this time, I can help you solve some external obstacles. By then, No one will interfere anymore. The rest needs to be solved by yourselves. If you still can’t win, it’s your own problem.”